


Love Comes Quickly And Unexpected

by Blue_Night



Category: Football RPF
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Developing Relationship, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Erik is Mario's little stepbrother, Explicit Sexual Content, First Kiss, First Time, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Marco is a teacher, Mario is still a footballer, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, talk show, theater play
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-09
Updated: 2017-11-14
Packaged: 2018-03-06 21:41:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 38
Words: 103,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3149429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blue_Night/pseuds/Blue_Night
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Marco is a young teacher and Erik is a seventeen years old teenager and his pupil. Mario is Erik's elder stepbrother and a famous football player.<br/>What will happen when they meet to help Erik out of his troubles?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. An Unexpected Visitor

**Author's Note:**

> I promised a Marco/Mario WIP several weeks ago and I wanted to keep my promise earlier, but, the muse didn't kissed me until today. But, she finally did and so here's the first chapter of the promised WIP.  
> I had to mess a little bit with Erik's and Mario's family, Mario's father is an archeologist and married Erik's mother. So, this has probably to be considered as an AU, as well, even more, because Marco is a teacher and has no clue about football.
> 
> I hope that you will like it as much as my two other WIPs, please let me know and give me feedback!  
> It's pretty late and there might be some errors, although I reread it to make sure that there won't be too much.
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!

Marco put his books back into his old leather bag, pressing his lips to a thin line. He should have known it, he really should have known better than to sit here and wait for parents who didn't care about their kids, at all. Most of the parents never showed up, and he knew all of the excuses they brought up to defend themselves.

He sighed and looked out of the window, pulling a face as he saw the snow falling down silently, covering everything with thick layers of different shades of white. He wouldn't catch the bus any more and he would have to walk the whole way to his small flat in his new shoes. “That's so typically you, Marco Reus,” he muttered to himself, wrapping his scarf around his neck. “Why didn't you put on your boots this morning?”

He sighed and headed to the door of the classroom. Maybe, the bus would be late because of the weather and there was still the small chance that he would catch it if he hurried. He had just reached it when someone standing in the corridor before the classroom pushed the door open all of a sudden, almost hitting Marco in his face with it.

Marco jumped back and rubbed his forehead where the door had grazed him, staring puzzled at the boyish face with the softly rounded cheeks red from the cold outside that emerged in the small slit. Two brown eyes looked at him apologetically and the soft lips curled into a sheepish smile.

“Mr. Reus? I'm Mario Götze, I came because of the letter you sent to us. I'm truly sorry that I'm late, but the traffic is simply horrible when it snows. I'm glad that I did make it in time to meet you here.”

The young man pushed the door wide open and appeared fully in the doorway now, revealing a body that was apparently in perfect shape, Marco could see that even though the thick jacket covered most of it. The young man wasn't tall, but surely perfectly built underneath his winter clothing.

Marco frowned, considering the young man who couldn't be much older than twenty. There was no way that this handsome young man was Erik's father. Erik was seventeen and therefore only a few years younger than this unknown guy.

“And you are who?” he asked mistrustfully and cautiously. Mario smacked himself on his forehead. “Sorry, I'm pretty dense sometimes. I'm Erik Durm's elder stepbrother. We don't have the same name. My father married his mother. You wrote us a letter because of some difficulties Erik has?”

Marco slumped down on one of the old desks where his pupils were sitting during the classes. “And you are here why? Where are your parents?” he asked angrily. “Is this some kind of bad joke?”

Mario bit his soft bottom lip and Marco found himself staring at the reddening spot. He blinked and forced his eyes away from the young man's mouth only to find himself drawn in by the beautiful brown eyes that looked pleadingly at him.

“Of course, not, Mr. Reus. My parents – also my father and my stepmother are not in Germany at the moment. My father is an archeologist and he is in Mexico right now and he will stay there for the next three months. My stepmother always accompanies him. But, we take it seriously that Erik has so much trouble and I will do everything I can to make it easier for him.”

Marco blinked. “I see,” he murmured, not sure if he really understood what was going on. “You two live alone while your parents are not in Germany?” he made sure and Mario bit his lip again. “I'm of age and I earn my own money. Apart from that, my father always makes sure that we will have enough money during his absence.”

He opened his jacket as if he was too warm and Marco could see that he had been right with his suspicion, the brunette's body was perfectly toned. The tight white shirt accentuated his torso very nicely while his tight dark blue jeans revealed slim, but strong muscled long legs.

Marco was too warm all of a sudden, too. “You have a job? What do you do? You look more like a student.” he asked curiously.

Mario blushed and shot him a strange look. “I'm a footballer. I play for Bayern München,” he drawled in a questioning voice, obviously not sure if he should be amused or offended.

Now, it was Marco's turn to bit his lip and blush. “I'm sorry,” he mumbled. “I'm not that much into football. You have to be good then, if you play for Bayern München. Do you play in the second team? You certainly watched the World Cup on TV with them?” he asked in the attempt to make polite conversation. He knew that he was babbling, but he felt stupid, because he hadn't had any clue that Erik actually had a stepbrother who played football in the most famous German club.

Mario stared at him and blushed furiously and Marco wasn't quite sure if he was red because of his embarrassment or because of his anger. “No. I didn't watch it on TV,” he said in a slightly strangled voice. His lips twitched and Marco had the suspicion that his late visitor was laughing at him.  
“I was there, in Brazil, playing with the National Team.”

Marco felt as embarrassed and stupid as he had felt only rare times. “I see. I'm truly sorry - as I said before, I'm not into football, at all. If you were there, then you are one of the champions?”

Mario slowly nodded his head. “Yes, I am,” he replied friendly. Marco swallowed. “My sincerest congratulations, then. I'm truly honored to meet one of our famous champions in person." He finally offered Mario his hand which he of course, should have done much earlier and Mario shook it, smiling at him. Marco hesitated for a moment, but then, he asked cautiously: "You probably know the one who shot the final goal then, too? My nephew is dying to get an autograph from this special player who made us champions after such a long time again." Mario watched him thoughtfully and his lips twitched again.

“Yes, I know him. This surely can be arranged,” Mario eventually answered with a deadpan expression on his handsome face with the innocent boyish features and Marco got the impression that he was missing something truly important, he only couldn't put his finger on it.

Mario smiled at him. “But, I'm not here to talk about football, but about my younger brother. You're his class teacher, right?”

Marco nodded his head. “Yes, I am. I'm also his English and his German teacher. He has bad grades in both classes and he won't make it and will have to repeat a year if his grades won't become better, soon. I tried to talk to your parents before, I called them, but they didn't bother to call me back.”

Mario pulled a face. “My father is archeologist with all his heart,” he said silently. “He truly cares for us, but he's absent-minded most of the time, busied with his excavations.”

Marco considered the young man who had sat down on another desk next to him. “Erik needs some help. He is a good guy, but he won't be able to solve his problems all alone. I also got the impression that he feels unhappy. He has only one friend in the class and doesn't even try to come closer to his classmates and make some friends.”

Mario sighed. “I will talk to him and try to help him,” he assured Marco and Marco tried to look relieved, but obviously, he hadn't been able to hide his doubts from the younger one, because Mario shot him an offended look. “I might be footballer, but, I made my vocational baccalaureate diploma not long ago and I'm sure that I will be able to help him,” he snorted. “And if not, I will see to a private teacher to help him.”

Marco raised his hands in a calming and apologetic manner. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you. You really care for him, right?”

Mario smiled. “Yes, I do. We are very close. I might be only his stepbrother, but I consider him and my stepmother as much as my family as my other family.”

“Very well, then.” Marco stood up and took his old bag again. He shot a quick glance at the weather outside, pulling a face as he saw that the snowing had increased during the last half an hour. “Shit weather,” he muttered to himself.

Mario rose to his feet and closed his jacket again. “Do you have to drive a long way home?” he asked. Marco sighed. “I have no driver license. I wanted to take the bus, but, as it seems to be, I have to walk,” he said.

Mario considered him, thoughtfully, but then, he smiled at him and this smile simply took Marco's breath away.

“It would be my pleasure to drive you home,” he offered and Marco's heart was missing several beats before it began to race. “You wouldn't mind?” he asked, not sure if he had heard the other right.

Mario's smile deepened. “Not at all. Come on, I'll give you a ride.” He turned to the door and Marco followed him out of the room, not sure if he was taking the biggest chance of his life or making the biggest mistake. But, he was sure that he would find out if it was the first or the second, sooner rather than later.


	2. Snow And Coffee

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco has met Erik's stepbrother Mario, a famous footballer for the first time. Mario offered him to drive him home.  
> What will Marco do when they arrived at his home?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the new chapter of Marco's and Mario's story. Thank you so much for your great and lovely feedback! You're a great audience and I love writing for you.
> 
> Please, let me know if you liked the second chapter as much as the first one!

Marco followed Erik's brother to the parking lodge where the young footballer had parked his car. The snow was still falling down in thick white snowflakes and Marco became cold and wet within few minutes. He had no umbrella and there was no way that the rather thin leather of his new shoes would protect him from having cold and numb feet until he got into the car.

Mario didn't seem to mind the cold, he was actually whistling and seemed to be in a good mood. He wore a cap and didn't seem to feel the cold, at all. Marco turned up the collar of his jacket, shivering in the icy wind blowing the snowflakes in his face, while Mario wiped the fresh snow from his car with his hand that was covered by a thick glove. The car was red and obviously pretty new, but Marco couldn't see which car model it was because the white snow covered most of it except for the windows Mario had cleaned.

“Nice car,” he said just to say anything and Mario shot him a brief look from underneath his surprising thick eyelashes. “Let me guess - you're not much into cars, too,” he snickered and Marco blushed and shrugged his shoulders in a sheepish manner.

“As I told you before, I have no driver license,” he murmured. Mario grinned at him. “It's okay. It's an Audi and my car is prepared for the winter traffic. Plus, I know how to drive and I also know how to drive when it's snowing. So, you don't have to be afraid. Just give me your address.” He opened the door at the passenger's side for him and Marco gratefully slumped down on the comfortable seat.

Mario circled the car and entered it from the other side. He started the engine and pushed two buttons. “The seats are heated,” he explained as Marco considered the buttons curiously. “You will be warm again, soon.”

Marco snuggled close in his seat, already feeling the warmth of the heated seat. He told Mario his address and the footballer typed it in the keyboard of his navigation system.

The footballer maneuvered his car out of the parking lot and focused on the icy road and Marco stared out of the window in silence, not trying to speak to the younger one. He didn't drive himself, but, it was still snowing heavily and the roads were slippery and he knew better than to distract the driver while driving through such weather.

Mario didn't make any attempt to talk to him, either, just turned the radio on and Marco closed his eyes, listening to the music and the footballer's cheerful humming, relaxing for the first time within the last hour. The warmth and the humming finally lulled him to sleep and he didn't notice the brief glances and the soft amused smiles Mario shot him from time to time while he drove to Marco's place.

 

\------------------------------------------------------

 

“Mr. Reus? We are there.” Someone gently shook his shoulder and Marco blinked wearily, trying to clear his sleep-fogged mind. “W-w-what?” he stammered, before he jerked in his seat, wide awake within one second. “I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep!” he mumbled, deeply embarrassed, musing briefly about his strange ability to make a complete fool of himself in front of Erik's stepbrother the entire time.

Mario smiled at him. “There's no need to be sorry for anything. Is this the right address?” he asked, pointing at the building in front of the car. Marco looked out of the window. “Yes, it is, thank you.”

He hesitated, but then, he scratched the last pieces of his courage together and asked: “Would you like to come up with me for a coffee? There is a underground parking lot where visitors are allowed to park, too.” Mario considered him surprised, it was apparent that he hadn't expected an invitation, but then, he nodded with a grateful smile. “Coffee would be good, thank you. Driving through this weather is rather exhausting.” Marco's heart skipped a beat and he found himself grinning widely. “Fine! The entrance to the garage is at the other side of the building, right there.” Mario's eyes followed his finger and he started the engine again and drove the car into the underground parking lot Marco had shown him.

 

\------------------------------------------------------

 

“Make yourself comfortable, please,” Marco said as they entered the flat. He shrugged out of his jacket and hung it over the coat-hanger on the coat rack, before he took Mario's jacket from him to hang it beside his own jacket. Their sleeves touched and it almost looked like an old couple walking side by side and holding hands. Marco dwelt in the sight for one moment before he realized what he was doing and he blinked and pulled himself together again with effort.

He looked at the younger one who smiled briefly at him before he gazed down at his shoes. He considered his boots and frowned. “It would be better to take them off, wouldn't it?” he asked when he noticed the small puddle of dirty water caused by the melting snow underneath the soles of his shoes.

Marco nodded his head. “If you don't mind walking in your socks? Unfortunately, I have no slippers for guests,” he said apologetically. Mario shrugged his shoulders. “I wear slippers at home only rare times. The socks are fresh and have no holes, so I won't embarrass myself,” he stated with a crooked boyish smile and Marco's heart missed another beat. Mario Götze was the most amazing and handsome young man he had ever seen and the brunette's smile did incredible things to some special regions of his lower body parts.

“The living room is right here, please wait there for me,” he beckoned him after clearing his throat and inhaling deeply and Marco followed him into the friendly chamber. It wasn't big, but with a large window and all in all, it was a pleasant room with comfortable furniture inviting to sit down and relax. Mario sat down on the big couch and Marco headed to his small kitchen to make some coffee.

While the coffee slowly dropped into the pot, he stared out of the window without really seeing something, musing about what Mario had told him. Marco understood some things much better now and he also knew why Erik hesitated to speak about his uncommon family. His stepfather seemed to be a typical scientist, only interested in his excavations and his mother accompanied her husband most of the times and wasn't there for him. And his stepbrother, who truly seemed to care about him, was a famous footballer with his own world he lived in. Marco sighed. He was aware of the fact that most of his colleagues didn't understand why he involved himself in his pupil's matters so much, but, he just couldn't help himself. He was a teacher wholeheartedly and he loved to arouse his charge's passion for the things he taught them, but, he also knew that he would only be able to do so if he knew their dreams, wishes and problems.

The coffee machine made burping and slurping sounds as the last drops of the hot dark-brown brew dropped into the glass pot and he switched the machine off and put two mugs, milk, sugar and spoons on a platter. He placed the pot in the middle of the platter and carried his cargo into the living room.

Mario sat on the couch with his feet pulled comfortably under his backside and he was focused on the heavy book Marco had left lying on the coffee table. The young footballer didn't flip through the pages, he actually read something, his lips moving slightly as he murmured to himself.

Marco almost let the platter fall down on the coffee table. The mugs clattered together and Mario raised his head to look at him. “Is everything okay? May I help you?” he asked politely and Marco felt pretty stupid and dense again. “No, no, thank you, everything's okay.” He hurried to assure the other one while he poured coffee in one of the mugs and looked questioningly at the young footballer. “Milk, sugar?”

“Both, please,” Mario replied with a smile. He noticed Marco's disbelieving gaze at the thick book in his lap and added. “I hope that you don't mind that I read your book.”

Marco shook his head, handing the mug to the brunette. Mario carefully laid the book back on the table and took the offered coffee. “Thank you,” he murmured, taking the mug with both hands as if he wanted to keep them warm this way.

Marco served himself and sat down on the right side of the couch snuggling close to the armchair like Mario had done so at the left side. “No, not at all. I'm just surprised. It's Shakespeare and it's English – the English of the middle ages.”

Mario pursed his lips and Marco got the impression again that the young man was inwardly laughing at him. “Yes, I noticed it. I read Shakespeare in school myself and I always liked the original version better. We only used the small yellow 'Reclam booklets' in school. I'm just a little bit out of practice, because the English we use on the pitch has nothing to do with Shakespeare. Reading it aloud to myself is easier to 'feel' this special language he used, I always did so when I had to read it for my classes.”

Marco stared at him, amazed and happily at the same time. He really hadn't expected to find someone who knew the difference between reading the 'real' Shakespeare and the small booklets he had to use in his classes, as well. He probably was grinning like an idiot from ear to ear, but he didn't care as he answered with obvious excitement in his voice: “Yes, I know exactly what you mean. I do this myself, too. We have the same 'Reclam booklets', but at home, when I'm preparing my subject matters I only use this book. Plus, I read it aloud myself to get this feeling you mentioned.”

Mario smiled at him and his cheeks reddened by this praise from his stepbrother's teacher and for one moment, they looked each other deep in the eyes, forgetting everything else. Mario finally broke the spell as he raised his mug to his lips to drink from the coffee. “Hm, you really know how to make real good coffee!” he rewarded Marco for his praise by praising his skills in making coffee and Marco's heart began to gallop with exaltation. He lifted his own mug at his lips to hide his confusion and his arousal and almost burned his mouth with the hot drink, but, Mario didn't seem to notice it, asking him questions about his job and Erik's problems.

The afternoon went by quickly and when the early dawn eventually darkened the room, Mario stood up to leave. They had decided to keep in touch for Erik's sake and had exchanged their telephone numbers during their talk.

Marco accompanied the young footballer to the door, watching him dress with his shoes and his jacket again. He didn't want the other one to leave, but, there was nothing he could say without revealing his inappropriate feelings for his pupil's relative and so, he kept his mouth shut.

When he was finished with dressing, Mario offered his right hand and smiled at him. “Thank you for the nice afternoon, Mr. Reus. I will do my very best to help, Erik, you have my word on that.”

Marco took the offered hand and shook it. “I have to thank you, Mr. Götze,” he said, his voice sounding a little bit hoarsely, because the feeling of Mario's warm hand in his own sent electric jolts of pleasure right into his groin. “And I know that you will do all you can to help him. I will contact you if there are problems again.”

Mario nodded his head and turned around to leave after one last deep look in Marco's eyes. Marco watched him heading down the stairs and only closed the door when the brunette was really out of sight. He went back into the living room to take the platter and carry it back into the kitchen, when he noticed a piece of paper peering out of the thick book with Shakespeare's works.

He carefully opened the book and took the paper to look at it. It was a photograph of Mario. He beamed into the camera and looked utterly happy and so beautiful that it almost hurt to look at him. Marco could see that it was not an official autograph, but a picture that had been taken privately. He frowned and turned it around.

Mario had written something in a surprisingly sweeping handwriting:

_'For my dear fan Nico, from a friend of your uncle Marco, Mario Götze'._

Marco first stared at the handwriting, confused and frowning and then, at the picture in front again, not knowing what it meant. When he suddenly remembered that he had asked the young footballer in the classroom for an autograph from the famous player who had made them champions again and that he had told him that his nephew's name was Nico during their talk, he flopped down on the couch, blushing furiously and groaning, glad that Mario wasn't there any longer to be a witness of his stupidity and smacking his forehead with his hand. He squeezed his eyes shut and muttered as ashamed and embarrassed as he had never felt before:

“Oh no, Marco! What have you done? You're really the biggest fool in the whole wide world!”


	3. About Brothers And Girlfriends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco is deeply embarrssed and feels stupid at the moment and Mario is on his way home to talk to his younger brother. Will he be able to help him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm simply overwhelmed by your wonderful feedback! Thank you for loving my story about Marco and Mario so much!  
> Here's the new chapter, hopefully, you will like it as much as the first two ones! Please, give me feedback and let me know!

“Erik, I'm home!” Mario yelled when he opened the door, but then, he inwardly smacked himself. It most likely would have been better to sneak up on his younger stepbrother to see if he actually was doing his homework instead of playing FIFA with his play-station again. He shrugged out of his jacket and hung it on the hall stand, before he pulled at his left boot, jumping on the other foot and almost losing his balance as he did so. When he finally had managed to take both of his heavy winter boots off, he placed them on the newspaper lying underneath the radiator to dry them and looked in the mirror to make sure that his hairdo had survived wearing a thick cap.

When he was satisfied with his appearance, he made his way to the large living room from where he could hear the well-known noises of the game Erik played most of the time when he was at home. Erik sat on the couch, totally absorbed in his game and it was clear that he hadn't heard Mario yelling at him at all. He groused rather loudly using all the 'nice' swear words their mother had forbidden him to use them, because he obviously was about to lose his match against the console and this normally upset him in a way Mario couldn't quite understand, because all in all, it was just a game.

Mario sighed, crossed the room and switched the flat-screen off, standing before it with his hands on his hips and a determined expression on his face.

“Hey! You can't do that! I was about to win this game!” Erik complained, scowling at his elder brother, but his cheeks flushed slightly with his little lie.

Mario took a deep breath to steel himself for the inevitable quarrel. “No, you were not. Erik, we need to talk!” he opened up the forthcoming conversation and Erik pursed his lips in a pouting manner, crossing defiantly his arms before his chest and leaning back against the comfortable back rest of the big couch. “And about what?” he snapped, but the way how he avoided Mario's eyes told Mario that Erik knew quite well the topic he wanted to bring up.

“I had a very interesting talk with your class teacher Marco Reus today,” he said, watching closely Erik's reaction. Erik turned his head to look out of the window. “Aha. I bet he became totally excited when he realized who you are and was only interested in getting an autograph from you!” he said, his voice flat and impassive as if he didn't care at all, but Mario knew that Erik did care about the fact that he was only the 'unimportant' little stepbrother of the famous football player Mario Götze for everyone who learned the truth about his relatives. Of course, he was neither unimportant, nor little or anything else, but Mario understood his feelings better than Erik probably could imagine and he oftentimes felt angry about the way Erik was treated by other people.

Marco Reus hadn't behaved like all the others and Mario snickered at the memory of his first encounter with the young teacher. “In fact, he told me off, because I showed up much too late and because it was me instead of our dad, and then, he asked me if this was some kind of bad joke and took me for a student. When I told him that I am footballer, playing for Bayern München, he asked me if I were in the reserve team and if I had watched the World Cup on TV with my teammates,” he retold the happenings of the afternoon and Erik stared at him, disbelievingly and with his mouth hanging open, before he began to laugh so hard that he bent forward to ease the cramps.

“He didn't do this, no way, you're joking, right? I mean – everyone in Germany knows who you are!” he finally gasped, when he had caught his breath again after several minutes. He wiped the tears from his eyes and looked at Mario who still stood before the TV, watching him with a stern face. Erik became silent as he noticed Mario's annoyance. “He really did? He didn't recognize you?” he eventually made sure and Mario nodded his head.  
He wasn't angry because Marco hadn't known him, but because Erik didn't take him seriously and thought that he was joking about his talk with Erik's class teacher.

“Yes, for him, I was only your elder stepbrother who came too late because of the snow. He was about to leave and he was pretty angry, because he thought that none of your family cared enough about you to talk to him and help you with your problems. He himself does care about you and your problems, Erik. You're lucky to have a teacher like him. I wished I would have had such teachers back then, when I was in school.”

Erik blushed and lowered his head. “Yes, I know, he's a damn good teacher and it's not his fault.” He chewed on his lip. “Did you tell him?” he eventually dared to ask curiously.

“What?” Mario narrowed his eyes. “That I want to help you? Yes, of course. That's why I went there to talk to him.”

“No. That you were the one who shot that goal.” Erik tilted his head to the side and now it was his turn to watch his elder brother attentively and Mario's turn to blush.

“He asked me if I knew the player who shot the goal, because his little nephew wanted an autograph from this special player so badly. I placed a photo in his book before I left him,” he admitted sheepishly.

“So, you really didn't tell him,” Erik mused, amazed and thoughtfully, before he frowned. “Before you left him? By the way, it is pretty late. Where were you for so long? In my school?”

Mario shook his head. “No. It was snowing heavily and he would have had to walk home. I offered him a ride and he offered me a coffee when we had arrived at his apartment block.”

“You drank coffee with my teacher – at his home?” Erik shouted. “What the hell did you do there?”

“As I said – drinking coffee and talking about your problems and about Shakespeare.”

Erik blinked and ruffled his hair with both hands. “Shakespeare,” he repeated, incredulously, staring at his brother with wide eyes. “You drank coffee and talked about – Shakespeare.”

“Yes, we did. Why are you so surprised? Because I know Shakespeare or because there is actually someone who doesn't want to talk about football with me the entire time?” Mario asked and his voice sounded hurt. He had truly enjoyed this afternoon and most of all he had enjoyed that Marco had been interested in him – in Mario – and not only in the famous footballer. He had felt comfortable and accepted and he had enjoyed the interesting and stimulating conversation with a handsome and intelligent young man who felt the same passion for his job like Mario felt for his own.

“Both, I guess,” Erik admitted after thinking about it and his face softened. “I'm sorry, Mario. I didn't mean to hurt you. It's only so hard to be your brother sometimes.”

Mario smiled at him. “I know and I really wished that I could make things easier for you. I promised him to help you and we decided to keep in touch in case you need more help than I can give you.” He wanted to add something, but the phone rang and Erik rolled his eyes.

“That's most likely AK. She called me the whole afternoon, because you didn't answer her calls. She threatened to call the police if you wouldn't call her back within the next two hours,” he stated theatrically. “She called at least twenty times, but I couldn't tell her where you were and you didn't answer my call, as well.”

Mario nodded his head while he crossed the room to pick up the phone. “Yes, I switched it off before I entered your school and I forgot to switch it on again after wards.” To be honest, he hadn't forgotten it, but he had wanted to be undisturbed while drinking coffee with Marco and therefore hadn't switched it on again, guessing that his girlfriend would disturb him with her calls. Normally, he would have told Erik off, because he had called her 'AK', but, he was pretty sure that Ann-Kathrin had called his brother more than just twenty times and that he had had to endure her foul mood because Mario hadn't been available.

“Hello?” he asked when he had pressed the button to answer the call. Erik grinned as his brother's girlfriend Ann-Kathrin began to shout in his ear the millisecond she heard his voice, enjoying Mario's obvious discomfort. Mario held the phone away from his poor ear and considered it with a frown while his 'better half' continued to tell him off in her very 'flowery' way, wondering briefly how she managed to shout and hiss without breathing in between her very long and excited sermon.

When she didn't pause for even one second, he eventually grew tired of her yelling and cut her short by yelling at her himself. “Ann-Kathrin stop! Now! Or I will hang up!” He heard her inhaling loudly and disbelievingly and took advantage of her surprise. “I already told you that I had an appointment with Erik's teacher today and it turned out to be a very long talk. I didn't answer your calls because of this, so stop yelling at me. You could have gone shopping with your friends instead of me and if I remember correctly, than you have so much clothes hanging in your very large wardrobe that you actually don't know what to wear any longer. We can go shopping another day. Erik needs me right now and his problems are much more important than your fiftieth jeans!”

There was complete silence in both, the phone he held against his ear and the living room and Mario felt Erik's eyes upon him, big and round like saucers as the teenager stared at him in awe and wonder. He could hear Ann-Kathrin's agonal respiration as she gulped for air like a fish on the strand at the other side of the line and Mario smiled grimly and very content with himself. It had felt so good to tell her his true opinion at least one time, instead of being the patient, nice and understanding boyfriend all the time.

“Mario!” she finally stammered when she had found her voice again, that sounded shaky, whiny and close to tears now. “How can you say that? You promised me to...” Her voice cracked and she sniffed loudly. If he hadn't known it better, being very aware of her astonishing ability to cry on alert, than he probably would have had a bad conscience right now, but to his own surprise, all he felt was impatience and annoyance.

“I didn't promise you anything. I told you that I had to meet Erik's teacher two days ago and it's not my fault if you forgot that. We can go out for dinner tomorrow if you want to, but today, I'll stay at home with my brother. It's snowing like hell and I'll have to be early at the training center tomorrow. You can agree to that or decide to pout for the next few days, it's your choice,” Mario told her and after several reproachful sniffs, his girlfriend decided to agree to the offered date the next evening. Mario left her the choice of the restaurant and he was pretty sure that she would let him pay for today, but, he didn't care. His brother needed him much more than she herself at the moment.

Mario hung up and rubbed his forehead. He had been in a really good mood after the few hours he had spent with Marco, but, Ann-Kathrin's call had ruined his mood, completely, and he felt a bad headache creeping up his neck.

Erik still stared at him in wonder and he looked much happier than he had in weeks. “I can't believe you did that,” he whispered and Mario swallowed hard. He crossed the distance to his brother with three large steps and crouched down before the couch. “I'm sorry, Erik. I know how hard it is for you that our parents always stay away from us for months because of dad's work. But, please, believe me when I tell you that you will always come first for me. You just have to say it if you need me and I will be there for you, I promise you.”

Erik hesitantly nodded his head. “I'm sorry that I caused so much trouble,” he said in a low voice, hanging his head.

“Don't be. Come on, show me your homework and the difficulties you have with them and we will do it together, okay? And later, we will call us a pizza and play together, deal?” Mario raised his hand and Erik beamed at him and gave him five.

“Deal!” he shouted and got up to his feet, eagerly. Mario followed him to his room with a smile, relieved that his brother finally seemed to be ready to work on his problems and at least try to find a solution.

He felt for the piece of paper with Marco Reus' phone number in his pocket and smiled. The young teacher had impressed him with his passion for not only his work, but also for his pupils. For the blonde, his job seemed to be a real vocation and Mario couldn't remember the last time he had been so fascinated by another person. He wanted to see him again and talk to him, about Shakespeare and everything Marco liked and loved. He wanted to get to know him better and see him smiling and he wanted to be the one who made him smile.

Mario felt for the small paper again just to make sure that it was still there and then sat down at his desk, focusing on Erik and the book the younger one had opened. Helping Erik with his homework would be the best way to reach his goal and see the other man again and so, he picked up the book and began to read, knowing that Shakespeare probably was the best chance to win the young teacher's friendship and maybe even his heart.


	4. Pounding Of The Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco muses about his stupidity and Erik is willing to do his homework in the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You're the best! Thank you so much for your wonderful support, for all the hits, kudos and comments, it's an honor to write for you!
> 
> Enjoy the new chapter and please, continue with your wonderful support!

Marco had spent the rest of the afternoon and most of the evening with musing about his stupidity and trying to find a solution how he could make it up with Erik's stepbrother and apologize for his silliness in an appropriate way. He sat on the couch where Mario Götze had sat, staring from the photograph at his mobile phone and back at the picture again, unable to focus on his work or anything else. His thoughts circled around every word the brunette had said and around every look and every gesture and when the film before his mind's eye came to the end when Mario had left him, it started at the beginning again, just when the younger one had entered the classroom.

He was sure that Mario felt offended because he hadn't known who he actually was or that he was at least laughing at him and he broke his head about what he should say to him the next time they talked to each other. He actually had googled Mario Götze in the internet like a lovesick teenage girl would do about her idol and read every single word that was written in the various forums about him; and he had groaned even more about his behavior when he had realized how well-known and famous this talented young footballer was. He actually had become sick to his stomach when he had seen the pictures showing Mario with his girlfriend Ann-Kathrin and and his heart had hurt as if it wanted to break into a million pieces.

“That's so typically you, Marco Reus – falling in love with a famous footballer who has a beautiful girlfriend and better things to do than to spend time with the stupid teacher of his younger brother!” he muttered to himself, but he simply couldn't force his eyes away from the beautiful photo showing a relaxed and happy Mario who beamed into the camera.

He picked up his phone from the coffee table and the piece of paper with Mario's phone number. It was rather late, a quarter to ten and Mario probably was enjoying himself with his footballer friends or his pretty girlfriend and probably had already forgotten their talk in the afternoon, but, Marco found himself dialing the number he already knew by heart as long as he had stared upon it before he could stop himself.

He listened to the silent beep of the ringing tone three, four five times and he was just about hanging up again, when the beep suddenly was interrupted by Mario's soft and warm voice: “Hello?”

Marco gulped for air and cleared his throat before he was able to answer hesitantly: “Mr. Götze? Uhm, here is Marco – Marco Reus – Erik's teacher.”

There was a short pause and Marco was certain that Mario's reaction to his late call would show his annoyance about the unwanted disturbance by whatever it might have been what he had done, but to his immense surprise and relief, Mario sounded almost happy as he replied: “Mr. Reus, what a nice surprise! What can I do for you?”

Marco swallowed again and took a deep breath. “I'm truly sorry for disturbing you that late in the evening, but, I wanted to thank you for the autograph for Nico. He will be the happiest child in the entire world when he'll get it. Plus, I – I wanted to apologize for my stupidity. I'm so sorry that I was so dense and didn't know who you are.” His voice cracked at the end of the sentence and he steeled himself for Mario's mocking laughter. He truly deserved it after his offending behavior and his only wish was that Mario would allow him to make up for it.

“There is no need for being sorry for anything, Mr. Reus,” Mario replied in a friendly voice. “You didn't disturb me, at all; and I never minded you that you didn't know who I am. To be honest, I found it refreshing to be considered only as Erik's relative who came to you because of my brother's problems and I appreciate that you care so much for Erik more than I can tell you. Please, don't apologize for your behavior. You gave me the feeling that you were truly interested in Erik's difficulties and in me as a person and not only as a footballer. I enjoyed our talk about Shakespeare a lot and I would like to do this again.”

Marco's heart started to race and the corners of his mouth began to hurt, because he was grinning widely like an idiot as he admitted: “I enjoyed our talk, as well, Mr. Götze. It happens only rare times that I can talk about Shakespeare with someone who is truly interested in this topic. But, I really want to make up for my ignorance and I wanted to ask you if you would like to come to dinner one evening. I might not know much about football and cars, but I really know how to cook.” His throat was dry like sandpaper and he was sure that Mario would recline his offer and tell him that he was too busy for spending another evening with him. He didn't know from where he had taken the courage to invite Erik's famous brother for dinner, but now, the words had been spoken out loud and all he could do was to keep his composure when Mario turned down his offer.

“I would love that,” Mario replied gently and Marco blinked. He must be hallucinating because he wished with all his heart that Mario returned his feelings. “Really?” he made sure, stunned and disbelievingly.

“Yes, Mr. Reus. I would love to have dinner with you.” Mario's voice sounded slightly out of breath and Marco's heart skipped at least three beats before it started to gallop like a horse that had to win a race. “That's great!” Was all he could stammer and then: “How about – Saturday?” He bit his lip the second he had suggested it, because Mario surely wanted to spend the weekend with his girlfriend and not with his brother's teacher.

“Saturday would be perfect.” Came the instant reply.

Marco pinched himself forcefully to make sure that he wasn't dreaming and a soft groan escaped his lips as the pain shot through his arm. “Is everything okay, Mr. Reus?” Mario's voice through the open line sounded concerned and Marco only nodded his head until he realized that Mario couldn't see it. “Yes, thank you, everything's fine. Saturday, then. About twenty hour?”

“I will be there,” Mario agreed and Marco had to suppress a shout of joy. He knew that he should end the call, but, he wasn't ready for that and Mario seemed to feel the same way, because he said: “Erik showed me the matter of subject in both classes and I think that I will be able to help him. We spent the evening together and he told me about his problems, at least a little bit. I have to thank you for your letter, Mr. Reus. I don't know if he had done it without our talk this afternoon.”

Marco's heart missed another beat. He would have to see a doctor if it kept going on like this. “You're welcome, Mr. Götze,” he said hoarsely. “I only wished that some of my other pupils had relatives who cared about them as much as you do.”

There was another short pause, before Mario asked: “Maybe, we could talk to each other via phone on a daily basis about the homework and the progress Erik hopefully will make?”

Marco pinched himself again. He really must be dreaming. “Of course, Mr. Götze, I normally don't go to bed before half past twenty-two, so we could talk later in the evenings if you'd like to.”

“Yes, I'd like that.” Mario hesitated for one moment, before he ended the call. “Thank you for calling me, Mr. Reus. I wish you good night.” His voice sounded husky and as if he didn't want to hang up and Marco swallowed, because he could have spend the entire night talking to the young man with the beautiful brown eyes and the handsome boyish face, but he knew that he had to behave level-headed and maturely and so he said: “I wish you good night, too, Mr. Götze.” before he hung up. He took one of the thick cushions that lay on the couch and pressed it close to his heart, staring dreamily out of the window with a happy and wistful smile on his face.

Saturday, he would see him again - only a few days and he would see Mario again.

 

\------------------------------------------------------

 

Erik entered the classroom for the first time within weeks without having a bad conscience. He had managed to do all of his homework the previous evening, Mario had helped him not only with English and German, but also with maths and science and Erik actually was looking forward to his classes today, knowing that he wouldn't get another bad grade for his missing homework.

The previous evening had been great. Mario had kept all of his promises and had not only helped him with his homework, but also ordered a giant pizza and played with him. They had talked and laughed and Erik had been happy and exhausted in a good way when Mario had told him that it was time for sleeping. He had slept the entire night, peacefully instead of tossing and turning, fearing the next day and school and he also had been able to eat something for breakfast this morning without feeling sick with fear and discomfort. Mario had made it for him while they had talked again and Erik had promised him to come to him with his problems in the future.

“Hey, Erik!” His friend Matthias greeted him and Erik smiled widely at his best friend. “Hey, Matze.”

Matthias considered him with narrowed eyes. “Do you need my booklets?” he drawled hesitantly, but Erik grinned and shook his head. “Nope. I did all of my homework yesterday.”

Matthias raised his eyebrow. “You're kidding me, right?” he demanded.

Erik's grin deepened. “No, I'm not. Mario helped me. He even turned AK down and told her that he'd rather spend the evening with me. We had pizza and played FIFA together after doing my homework.”

Matthias whistled with astonishment. “Wow. Did he help you or did he make it for you?”

“He helped me. I did it all by myself, but, he even was able to help me with maths. He had a talk with Mr. Reus yesterday and promised him to see to my problems,” Erik admitted. He still could hardly believe that his favorite teacher had told his famous brother off and that he hadn't recognized him, at all. But, he was deeply grateful for his teacher's care and was determined to do his best in the future to reward him.

The gong announced the first class and Erik sat down and fished his books out of his school bag. Mr. Reus was a little late, but that could have something to do with the weather, because it was still snowing. His classmates slowly entered the room, one after the other, chatting and laughing and Erik's face became the usual slightly bored and impassive mask to hide his uncertainty and his true feelings. Matthias was his only true friend, the one who actually liked him and not the fact that he was Mario Götze's brother.

The gong sounded for a second time and Mr. Reus emerged in the doorway, together with a new pupil. Erik stared at the unknown guy and almost forgot to breathe, because the young man was the most beautiful being Erik had ever seen in his whole life. His heart missed a beat and then, began to pound in his chest with feelings Erik had never felt before.

“Good morning, guys!” Mr. Reus made his way to his desk, the black-haired Adonis in tow and Erik's classmates replied in unison as they did every morning: “Good morning, Mr. Reus!” He was the favorite teacher of everyone in the class and most likely the most favorite teacher of the entire school. He was young and a handsome sight and he was friendly, patient and sensitive to his pupil's needs, without ever lacking the needed authority.

He considered his class and gestured to the teenager who stood beside him with a bored face, looking as if he cared for nothing, staring at the opposite wall.

“This is your new classmate, he moved from Dortmund to Munich and he will join us in the future. His name is Nuri Sahin. Nuri, you can sit down there.” He pointed to the desk opposite Erik.

The desks in the classroom formed a large 'U' and Nuri strolled to the free desk without saying one single word and without looking at his new classmates who had begun to murmur. He slumped down on the chair and stared straight forward, accidentally meeting Erik's eyes as he did so.

Erik stared back and time stood still.


	5. Maybe An End And A New Start?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is a new pupil in Erik's class and Mario promised his girlfriend an evening in a restaurant.  
> Will she be nicer as the day before? And will Mario and Marco keep in touch for Erik's sake?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You're awesome, absolutely awesome, there is no other word for that! Thank you so much for being such a great audience!  
> This chapter is a little bit shorter, but, I'm eager to let Mario and Marco have their dinner and Mario needed to have his dinner with Ann-Kathrin first. I don't know her and I'm sorry to make her unpleasant, but Mario belongs to Marco, right? ;-)

Time stood still and all Erik could do was staring into the endless dark-brown eyes that seemed to look straight into the deepest depths of his heart and his soul.

He drowned in Nuri's intense gaze and became blind and deaf for everything else, the murmur of his classmates, Matthias astonished sidelong glance and Mr. Reus' voice that cut through the murmur, until Nuri broke the spell and slowly let his eyes travel over his heated face and down on his torso. Erik swallowed, because his throat was suddenly dry and tight and Matthias' slight punch in his side with his elbow finally catapulted him back into the reality of his classroom.

Nuri's eyes grazed him for one last tiny second before he turned his head to look at Mr. Reus, his face as impassive as the face of a Greek statue made of stone.

Erik blinked and coughed, mumbling something intelligible in Matthias' direction. He focused on his teacher who shot him a brief concerned, but also friendly look, before he opened his bag to fish his book out of it. “So guys, let me see your homework, and then, we will start with another of Shakespeare's works – Romeo and Juliet,” he said. Erik blindly grabbed his booklets and couldn't resist to gaze furtively at the new pupil again. Nuri seemed to have a sixth sense for his hidden looks, because their eyes met again and Erik suddenly knew for sure how Juliet must have felt when she had seen Romeo for the first time.

 

\-------------------------------------------------

 

Mario had known that Ann-Kathrin would let him pay for his behavior of the previous day, but to his surprise, he couldn't have cared less. He had done a hard and exhausting training session in the morning and a training match in the early afternoon and all he wished was to stay at home and get some rest, but, he had promised his girlfriend to take her out for dinner and Mario was a man who stood by his word.

He had dressed with a dark blue jeans and a white dress shirt and when he had looked in the mirror, he had found himself musing about the question if Marco Reus would appreciate his appearance. He himself liked what he saw as he watched himself in the shining surface of his large mirror, the jeans accentuated his backside and his slim legs in a very attractive way and the white shirt gave him a distinguish touch, but Ann-Kathrin only pulled a face as she looked critically at him, obviously thinking that he was under-dressed.  
Mario didn't care, though, because he knew that he would never be thrown out of any restaurant, even if he decided to wear his eldest jeans, a sweater and sneakers. His name was all he needed to get access to every restaurant, bar or disco he wanted to visit.

Ann-Kathrin wore a tight and short dress that was absolutely not suited to the ice-cold weather and the snow, but, he only shrugged his shoulders. She considered herself as a grown up and if she wanted to risk a pneumonia by wearing such a ridiculous thin and short scrap of garment then, so be it.

He had picked her up pretty early and urged her to finish her makeup, because there was no way that he would still sit in the restaurant when it was time for calling Erik's teacher on the phone. Mario had been looking forward to the evening and the conversation with Mr. Reus via phone the entire day and he didn't want to have to talk to this fascinating young man being watched and heard by his girlfriend.

Now, she sat beside him in the passenger's seat where Marco had sat yesterday, pouting and stiff as a poker. Her long legs, only covered by a thin pair of tights, shivered visibly although he had turned on the car's heater and the heated seats. Mario sighed inwardly, remembering how Marco had sat beside him, snuggled close and comfortably in the seat and sleeping peacefully with a slight smile on his handsome face.

“We will be too early. I made the reservation for half past twenty!” She complained, scowling at him.

Mario concentrated on the snow-covered road and shrugged his shoulders. “If they don't have a table for us, then we will find another place,” he only remarked and Ann-Kathrin let out an annoyed cry. “You promised me that I could choose the restaurant!”

“You did. But, you should have thought of making an earlier reservation. I don't want to leave Erik alone at home for so long and I need to be fit tomorrow. You know that. You might think that I only 'play' football, but, I have to tell you, that it is actually my job and I take it seriously. I earn the money you love to spend so much with 'playing' football and I love my job. Not to mention that I don't want to spend my time with sitting on the bench, just because you think that I have to stay up all night for you and spend my time with celebrating and partying.”

Ann-Kathrin decided not to answer to this statement and Mario let her pout and turned the radio on while he drove through the darkness and the snow, wishing that one special handsome blonde teacher would sit beside him instead of his current girlfriend.

 

\-----------------------------------------------------------------

 

The view they had from their table in the restaurant '181 First' was great, but Mario wasn't in the mood to enjoy it. Ann-Kathrin had complained about everything, about their table, about the waiter who had served them, about the wine and the food. The table was to close to the window and not in the middle of the room, so they would be seen by everyone. Mario found the place where their table stood quite perfect, because he wanted to have some privacy, but he knew how hungry his girlfriend was for publicity. The waiter was too clumsy, which he wasn't at all, of course, but Mario didn't argue with her about that. The wine wasn't drinkable and the meal wasn't delicious enough and his pretty girlfriend sat opposite him with an annoyed expression on her face and didn't look pretty at all at the moment.

After enduring her sermon for more than two hours, Mario finally had enough. “Why. Did. You. Choose. This. Place. If. You. Don't. Like. It. Here?” he growled in a low voice. “Just because it is 'hip'? Stop acting like a three year old child which is pouting all the time. Your behavior would be appropriate and understandable if you actually _were_ a three year old child, but, you consider yourself as a grown up, so please, start _behaving_ like a grown up, Ann-Kathrin!”

Ann-Kathrin stared at him and her lips started to tremble while she got the agonal respiration Mario knew so well. He was just about to say something more, when his phone began to vibrate. He took it out of his pocket and looked at it. It was a message from his brother who had problems with his homework again. Mario frowned. He hadn't had much time this afternoon and Erik had assured him that he would try to do it alone, but, as it seemed, he had much more difficulties than he had thought and Mario wouldn't let him down again.

“I have to leave. Erik needs me,” he said to her, steeling himself for the inevitable. Ann-Kathrin opened her mouth to protest. “Erik, Erik, always Erik! I can't hear his name any more!” she hissed. “Why does your stupid and impudent little _step_ brother always come first?”

Mario narrowed his eyes. “Because my brother might be my stepbrother, but, he is my _brother_ , no matter if we share the same blood or not; and he's neither stupid nor impudent. And he comes first, because he is _my_ little brother and because I promised him to be there for him whenever he needs me.” He fished his wallet out of his pocket and laid some notes beside her plate.

“Call a taxi. I'll pay the bill for the meal, don't worry.” He took his phone and his wallet and stood up. “Don't you dare leaving me here alone!” she cried and Mario noticed the astonished and curious glances from the other tables. He smiled grimly. “Look, you finally have gotten the attention you were craving for, Ann-Kathrin. And if you want to break up with me just because I promised my brother to help him, then, please have your way and feel free to do that!” he said and turned around, making his way to the exit with his head held up high and a content feeling in his stomach, leaving his pouting – ex? - girlfriend behind.

 

\------------------------------------------------------------

 

Mario sat in the living room of his suite in the basement of the large house where his family lived. He also had his own flat, but, he always moved in in his parent's home when they were not in Germany, because he would never have even thought of leaving his brother alone in the big house. Erik had stayed with his friend Matthias while he had been in Doha with his club for the winter camp, but, Mario had picked him up from there right after his return to Munich.

He had come back about one and a half hours ago and found Erik sitting before his homework with tears in his eyes. This time, he had had difficulties with the essay he had to write for the next day and Mario had had to take him in his arm and calm him down, before he had been able to help him.

Erik hopefully slept now, peacefully and Mario sat on his couch and played with his smartphone, his heart pounding in his chest as he looked at it, trying to find the courage to call Marco Reus.

It was simply ridiculous, he was a famous football player and most likely just had broken up with his pretty girlfriend who could have had every guy she wanted to have and who didn't know her moods, but, the one person who made his heart race and his palms sweaty was a young male teacher who loved Shakespeare and didn't know anything about football.

Mario took a deep breath and dialed the number he knew by heart. He hadn't added it to his address book in his phone's data storage, because he didn't want to arouse any suspicions and he knew that he wouldn't forget Marco Reus' number. The beep came two times before Marco was at the other side of the line, sounding breathless as he said his name. “Hello, Marco Reus here?”

“Hello, Mr. Reus. Here is Mr. Götze – Mario. Did I disturb you?” He could hear the heavy breathing of the other man.

“No, not at all. I just came from the wash house in the basement when my phone rang,” Marco assured him, before he added after a tiny pause: “Hello – Mario uhm – Mr. Götze. How are you?”

Mario could see his happy grin in the glass of his sideboard. “I'm fine, thanks. And I like Mario better than Mr. Götze,” he admitted and this time it was his voice that sounded out of breath.

“Only if you call me Marco,” the young teacher insisted and he sounded as excited as Mario felt himself.

“It would be my pleasure! How was your day?” Mario hurried to say, cuddling up to the soft cushion in his back and making himself comfortable. The evening might have begun horribly, but, it would have a perfect end, Mario now knew that for sure as he listened to the other man's voice lightheartedly and happily.


	6. Sorrow And Comfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco and Mario have talked to each other the previous evening and Marco is in a good mood. But, there is someone who isn't in a good mood, at all, and Marco has to comfort him...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter wasn't planed and I actually wanted to update tomorrow, but, you are such a wonderful audience and the boys insisted of having this chapter written. So, here it is. If it goes on like this, this will turn out to be a very long fic. 
> 
> Enjoy the unexpected chapter and please, let me know if you liked it!

Marco entered the school whistling cheerfully and with a smile on his face. It was still cold and snowing, but he was in a good mood and he felt neither the cold, nor the wetness, having a wonderful warm feeling in his stomach since the previous evening and his talk with Mario on the phone. They had talked about everything for more than one hour and Marco still remembered every single word Mario had said.

He had been so nervous and had mused about if Mario expected him to call or not the entire day, but then, Mario had called him even earlier than he had thought and he had almost missed his the ringing of his phone, because he had had to wash his clothes and the wash house was settled in the basement of the building.

Mario. Marco tasted the name on his tongue again, had done so since Erik's brother had asked him to call him by his first name and he hadn't stopped smiling since then. He still did, making his way through the rather dark corridor to the teacher's room. Several lamps were damaged, but, the school had to be careful with the money they spent and the needs of the pupils always came first. He actually had his first class only in about two hours, but, he had wanted to prepare something for one of the other classes he had and he wanted to check some books in the school's library for that subject matter and had decided to use his free hours for that.

He frowned when he noticed the shadow of someone who had crouched himself to a small ball in the dark corner of the hallway and slowly went to the unknown pupil who obviously wanted to be alone. Normally, the pupils weren't allowed to enter this corridor, but, Marco wanted to know the reason for this inappropriate behavior before he decided if the kid had to be punished or not.

When he knelt down before the young guy, he realized that the pupil wasn't unknown, at all.

“Erik!” he asked concerned. “What happened? Is something wrong with you or your family?” A cold shiver ran down his spine as the thought of an accident that might have happened to Mario crossed his mind.

Erik looked up and Marco could see that he had cried. “Tell me, Erik,” he gently ordered, trying to keep his worries out of his voice.

Erik bit his trembling lip. “It's all my fault,” he whispered brokenly and Marco frowned. “What is your fault?” he inquired, confused and even more worried.

“They – they broke up and it's my fault!” Erik whined and Marco's frown deepened. “Who broke up? Your parents?” he asked disbelievingly.

Erik shook his head. “No. Mario and AK,” he mumbled. Marco's heart began to race again. The cold feeling in his stomach caused by his fear was replaced instantly by the wonderful warmth he had felt since the previous night again and he struggled hard not to grin from ear to ear, because he could see how upset and misery the teenager was.

He got up to his feet and offered his hand to the boy to help him up, as well. “Come on, Erik. We'll go to the teacher's room and I'll make you a cup of tea. And then, you can tell me what has happened,” he suggested and after one moment, Erik took the offered right and let himself be pulled up on his feet. He followed his teacher with his head hung low to the teacher's room.

Marco opened the door and greeted the few colleagues who were sitting there, drinking tea or coffee and chatting with each other. Mats Hummels, one of his friends and another one of the pupils' most favorite teachers smiled at him, but didn't ask what was wrong. It happened from time to time that one of the teachers brought one of the kids to their room to talk to them and Marco went straight to the other side of the room with Erik, where they would be alone and undisturbed, pressing the teenager gently down on one of the chairs. Erik slumped down, staring at the floor, still biting his lip and Marco headed to the table where the coffee machine stood and the pot with the hot water for tea. Someone had cooked water not long ago and he poured the water into two cups, before he put two tea bags with herbal tea into the cups.

Erik hadn't moved and Marco sat down next to him and handed him one of the cups. “Be careful, it's hot,” he warned him and Erik nodded and wrapped both hands around the mug as if he was cold.

“So, and now tell me what has happened and why do you think that it's your fault, Erik,” he demanded softly and Erik drew in a shaky, sniffing breath.

“Mario had a date with his girlfriend yesterday – Ann-Kathrin – I normally call her only AK,” he admitted sheepishly and Marco suppressed a satisfied snort. “They were out for dinner and I had promised that I would do my homework alone.” Erik blinked, biting his lip again. “I really tried, but, I had problems with the essay, because, because...” His voice cracked and Marco waited patiently for the boy to pull himself together again. Erik inhaled and exhaled and finally was able to continue.

“I sent him a message, because I didn't know what to do and he texted me back that he would come home and help me.” His voice cracked again. Marco considered him thoughtfully. “Did he keep his promise?” he asked, although he knew that Mario must have been at home when he had called him.

Erik nodded his head. “Yes, he did. He came home twenty minutes after my message. He must have driven pretty fast. I was so relieved. He comforted me and helped me and when he was there, it was so easy to write what I hadn't been able to write before, I don't know myself why I had had such problems when I had been alone.”

Marco smiled, but, it was a sad smile. He knew exactly why Erik had problems when he was alone. He felt confused and unloved and uncertain and screamed for attention. He actually was a wonderful warmhearted and sensitive young man, but his uncertainties, his parent's long absences and his brother's fame caused him to rebel against everyone and everything. He himself had been the first to realize that and so had Mario after their talk. Erik needed someone in his life who truly cared for him and was there when Erik needed someone and his elder stepbrother luckily was willing to be that person.

“He helped me and when I was finished, he made milk with honey for me and promised to stay at home for the rest of the evening. I fell asleep, but I had to use the restroom during the night and when I passed the living room, I heard Marco talking to someone on the phone. He was pretty angry and upset.”

Erik blushed and hung his head again. “I know that it wasn't okay to spy on him, but first, I thought that something was wrong with dad or mom. They normally talk to Mario at this time, because they are in Mexico, but then, I realized that it must be AK. Of course, I couldn't hear what she said to him, but I heard his answers to what she said and it was clear that they were arguing about me. Finally, he got enough and told her that he wanted to go to bed and that it was over and out between them, before he hung up, pacing up and down in the living room with balled fists. It is all my fault! I'm sure that he hates me now and that he wished that I wasn't there! But, I didn't mean to cause him trouble, I only...” New tears rolled down on his pale face and Marco swallowed as he saw the boy's heartbreaking sorrow.

“I'm sure that your brother doesn't hate you,” he said warmly. “What would you think if I tried to call him and talk to him while you drink your tea? Did you see him this morning?”

Erik shook his head. “I didn't sleep for the rest of the night and was up very early. I looked in his room, but, he was still sound asleep and I didn't want to wake him up, because he really needs his sleep. I heard him rummaging in the living room for a while after this call. So I left him a note and hurried to catch the early bus.”

Marco nodded. “All right. You will stay here and I'll go and make a call.” He stood up and Erik blinked. “Is it okay for me to stay here?” he asked surprised, forgetting about his sorrow for a while.

“Of course, Erik. You're not in the state of mind to follow your lessons at the moment and I want you to stay here until I've talked to your brother and you're feeling better again. Of course, you could also lie down in the sickbay, if you preferred that. I'll tell your class where you are, so you won't get a mint in the class book.”

Erik vigorously shook his head. “No, I'd rather wait here for you, Mr. Reus. Am I allowed to read in my books?” Marco had to suppress the urge to ruffle the boy's hair. He actually felt fatherly emotions for the teenager, although he was only a few years older. But, he still remembered how he had felt as a teenager and understood Erik's problems much better than he would have liked to. “Of course, Erik, if it helps to distract you, then, please, have your way. Mr. Hummels will see to you if there is something you might need. And drink your tea!”

Erik smiled at him, it was a teary and weak smile, but at least, he was able to smile again. Marco smiled back, before he crossed the room to talk to his colleague and friend. Mats listened to him and sighed. “Poor boy,” he said, shaking his head with regret. “It isn't easy for him with his famous brother. Some of the other kids only searched his company, because they wanted to get to know his brother and Erik drew back from everyone except for Matthias when he realized that they had only wanted to use him. Of course, I'll see to him. My first class only starts in about an hour.”

“Thank you, Mats.” Marco patted his shoulder and left the room to go to the secretary's office and make a call.

 

\------------------------------------------------------

 

Marco impatiently drummed with his fingers on the surface of the desk where he was sitting. “Yes, it is important. I'm the class teacher of his younger stepbrother and as you probably know, his parents are not in Germany at the moment. Please, I need to talk to him for a few minutes about his brother,” he insisted as politely as he was able to in this situation. The secretary of the most famous German football club at the other side of the line hesitated, but then, she sighed. “Please, hold the line, Mr. Reus, I will see what I can do for you.”

“Thank you very much,” Marco replied gratefully, listening to the music that announced that the line was still connected. He watched the hand of the big clock hanging on the wall slowly crawling from second to second and when it had made three full rounds, someone picked up the phone and the music stopped. “Hello?” he heard Mario's warm voice and Marco's heart skipped a beat as it always did when he heard the brunette's voice greeting him.

He shot a brief look at the school's secretary who was busied with her work and cleared his throat. “Mr. Götze? Here is Marco Reus, your brother's class teacher. I'm sorry that I have to disturb you, but, Erik is rather upset about a misunderstanding and I promised him to talk to you.”

There was a tiny pause, before Mario said. “Thank you, Mr. Reus, I'm glad that my brother has a teacher who cares about his pupils so much. What happened? Which misunderstanding do you mean?”

Marco turned away from the secretary, but to his luck, she stood up the very next moment, heading out of the door and murmuring something unintelligible. Marco swallowed. “I'm sorry, Mario,” he said in a low voice. “It seems that Erik listened by accident to your phone-call with your girlfriend last night. He heard that you most likely broke up and he thinks now that he's the reason for it and that you hate him now. He's really desperate and didn't calm down until I promised him to call you.”

“Uh, wow,” was the stunned reply, followed by another pause, before Mario finally said, his voice only a silent whisper. “Thank you, Marco. I didn't know that he was awake. Please, tell him that I don't hate him and that it's not his fault, at all. He's my brother and he's much more important to me than she ever was. Tell him that I love him and that he doesn't need to worry. I'm really fine.”

Marco swallowed. “I will. So, you really broke up with her?” he dared to ask, his voice rough and breathless. Mario chuckled quietly and the soft sound went straight into Marco's groin. “Yes, I did. I should have done it much earlier. But, I had no real reason until now.”

Marco wasn't sure if he was dreaming. “And now you had? A true reason, I mean?” he rasped and Mario chuckled again. “Don't you think so?” he drawled ominously and questioningly. “I'll have to go back. Will Erik be fine?”

Marco took a deep breath. “Yes, he will. Shall we talk tonight again?” He rubbed his sweaty palms against his jeans, leaving a dark mark there.

“In any case! I'll call you when Erik will be asleep – Marco,” Mario murmured before he hung up abruptly, but Marco didn't mind, knowing that it had nothing to do with him, but only with the circumstances.

He placed the phone back on the charging station and left the secretary's office, lost in his thoughts and with the wonderful warm feeling in his belly he had had since the last night. He had to wait only three days longer and then, he would see Mario again. Mario who had broken up with his girlfriend and who was a free man now...


	7. A Very Special Dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco is waiting impatiently for Saturday to finally come. Will Mario really come to dinner and what will happen if he does?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was as eager to get them at the dinner table as you were and I want to present you proudly the promised first date at Marco's home.  
> I 'messed' with him a little bit again, because Marco is pretty young for teaching pupils in the higher classes of a primary school, at least here in Germany, but, I found an explanation that might fit.
> 
> I also want to explain our grade-system to all of you who don't know it:  
> Our grades are subdivided in 15 points:  
> 15 - 13 points are the best grades: 1 in Germany, ('very well done') similar to the 'A' in the states for example.  
> 12 - 10 points come next: 2 in Germany ('well done') similar to the 'B'.  
> 09 - 07 points come next: 3 in Germnay ('satisfying'), similar to the 'C'  
> 06 - 04 points are the beginning of the bad grades: 4 in Germany ( 'adequate') similar to the 'D'  
> 03 - 01 points are really bad: 5 in Germany ( 'inadequate'), similar to the 'E' if that exists.  
> 00 points: worst case: 6 in Germany ( 'unsatisfactory'), would be an 'F'.
> 
> This system will be mentioned again, because this story is also about Erik and Nuri who are Marco's pupils.
> 
> I want to thank you again, you are an incredible awesome audience and it's wonderful to write for you!  
> Enjoy the new chapter and please, leave comments or kuods if you liked it!

Saturday, finally Saturday.

Marco had been waiting for Saturday to come with all his heart and all his mind. The last three days had passed in a haze and Marco didn't know for sure how he had been able to endure the waiting, doing his job and see to his other duties, but somehow, he must have managed to do all of this in a proper and appropriate way, because had gotten neither any calls from angry parents, nor had he been called to Mr. Klopp, the director of the school because of something he hadn't done the right way.

The only memories that were sharp and clear in his mind were the special hours of the last three evenings when he had talked to Mario on the phone. Listening to the warm voice that could be warm and soft, hoarse and breathless, passionate and tender depending on what they talked about had been the absolute highlights of the last days and Marco had to admit that he had become addicted to that voice. The other things he remembered pretty clearly were Erik's happiness and gratitude the teenager had shown since Marco had come back to the teacher's room to assure him that Mario loved him and didn't think that it was Erik's fault that he had broken up with his girlfriend.

Erik had done his homework and even begun to participate to the lessons, eagerly and truly interested. Marco was happier about that change than he could express in words and he had told Mario about Erik's new behavior and that he had gotten twelve points for his oral participation in both classes, English and German.  
Mats who taught maths in Marco's class had informed him that Erik had begun to show interest in his courses, as well; and Mario's voice actually had trembled as he had thanked him for his help. Marco knew that Erik's improved well-being was due to the mixture of both, Mario's brotherly and loving care and Marco's attempts to help the young boy, but, he drank in the hoarse praise like a junkie his drug, nonetheless, still wallowing in the memory.

Marco had never felt as close to someone as he already felt to Mario, although they knew each other for only five days and had only spent a couple of hours together, most of them talking on the phone.

And now, it was finally Saturday. The day when he would see Mario again. He had been waiting anxiously for Mario to tell him that he wouldn't come for dinner, that they had to cancel their date or at least postpone it for another day, but Mario had done neither the first, nor the second and the previous evening, during their daily talk, he had assured him again that he was looking forward to having dinner with Marco.

Marco had gotten up early, far too nervous to sleep any longer, and he had spent the morning with cleaning his flat from the top to the bottom. Then, he had hurried to get in time to his appointment with his hairdresser and after that, he had begun to cook. Mario had left him the choice between Italian and Asian food and Marco had chosen to cook Asian food. He had bought all he needed for this special dinner the previous day, he actually had spent two hours in the supermarket and chosen from the various range of goods very carefully.

He had decided to cook shrimps and prawns in a delicious sweet-and-sour sauce and duck a la Cantonese, both with rice and Chinese noddles. He had been torn between egg rolls and soup and had chosen to offer soup and baked bananas with honey and ice-cream as a dessert.

When he was sure that everything would turn out to be delicious and perfect, he took a quick shower and styled his hair. He used the aftershave he only used when he went to the theater and considered himself in the mirror, lost in thoughts and memories.

His last serious relationship had ended when he still had been at the university and it had ended in a bad way. His boyfriend had been another – elder student and he had been a control-freak, spying on Marco and accusing him of cheating on him the entire time – which of course, Marco had never done.  
He had had two or three brief encounters since then, but nothing serious and he had never felt the same way for anyone else as he now felt for Mario Götze, the famous footballer he hadn't recognized. For Marco, Mario was only a wonderful, warmhearted and fascinating handsome young man and he didn't care about his fame or publicity.

Marco forced his thoughts away from his past and he focused on his reflexion in the mirror again. He wore tight black jeans and a dark-blue dress shirt with small buttons that let his eyes shine even more blue and built a nice contrast to his blonde hair. He was a handsome sight himself and he didn't need to hide himself.  
He only wasn't sure about the proof of his rather wild youth as his eyes traveled to the long sleeves of his shirt. He normally wore long sleeves in school, even when the weather was pretty hot in the summer, although his pupils most likely wouldn't mind the sight of his tattoos. He did it more because of his colleagues and the parents of his pupils, because he knew all to well the prejudices and reservations his tattoos could arouse.

Mario had only seen him with long sleeves, but, it probably would be better to play with open cards and so, he rolled his sleeves up until one could see his forearms and his tattoos. Marco knew that some people reacted surprised and sometimes even with disgust when they saw them and he wanted Mario to know right from the start who he actually was. When he was content with his appearance, apart from his sweaty hands, of course, but he suspected that they would stay that way until Mario was finally there, he left his bedroom and controlled the dinner table he had set up during cooking several hours ago for the tenth time.

He went to the kitchen and looked into the pots and pans and his mouth watered by the delicious smell, although he had a tight knot in his stomach from his excitement. He looked at the clock hanging on the wall. Five minutes to twenty. Marco swallowed, suddenly pretty sure that Mario wouldn't come. He shot a look at his mobile phone, but, no one had tried to call him. There were two messages from his best friend Marcel whom he had told about his 'date'. Marcel wished him good luck and fun; and there was another message from Mats, reminding him of a book he had promised to lend him.

Marco began to pace up and down in his living room, balling his fists. _'He won't come, I'm sure he won't come,'_ he repeated like a mantra, staring at the hands of the clock as if he tried to get hypnotized. The hand jumped to the twelve and Marco bit his lip, almost drawing blood as the doorbell rang exactly the second it was eight o'clock.

 

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Marco rubbed his palms against his jeans, glad that he had chosen the black one to cover the wet marks. He stood in the doorway waiting for Mario to appear on the stairway.

His heart missed several beats as the brunette finally did, his cheeks rosy from the cold and maybe his own excitement, judging by the way he beamed at Marco. He wore the same jacket he had worn when he had visited Marco in his school, only the cap wasn't placed on his head.

“Hey! Wow, you're incredibly punctual!” Marco stammered, inwardly smacking himself for his silliness again.

Mario smiled at him, the crooked boyish smile that never failed to do incredible things to the lower parts of his body and shrugged his shoulders.

“To be honest, I was pacing up and down before the door for more than five minutes, but, my parents told me that it would be incredible impolite to come too soon,” he admitted and Marco could hardly suppress his groan. “I wouldn't have minded!” he croaked out, knowing that his cheeks had reddened with his exaltation and embarrassment.

Mario's smile deepened and he tilted his head to the side. “Am I allowed to come inside, then?” he asked in a teasing voice, because Marco hadn't moved to the side, still standing in the doorway as if he were glued to the floor.

“Uhm, yes, of course, I'm sorry,” Marco stammered again, moving to the side and letting Mario in. He closed the door behind him, firmly and relieved, because he knew how curious some of his neighbors were and he didn't want anyone else to see his visitor. Not tonight. Tonight, Mario should be only his.

Mario placed a bag on the small table under the mirror near the entrance and Marco helped him out of his jacket, hanging it on the coat rack beside his own again.

Mario took of his boots and turned to Marco, surprising him as he gently kissed him on the cheek, whispering: “Hello Marco,” in his ear as he did so.

Marco's face was burning deep red now, but, he grinned like an idiot as they looked each other deep in the eyes. Mario wore dark blue jeans and a white dress shirt, similar to the clothes he had worn during their first meeting, only much more elegant. The colors seemed to be his favorites and Marco had to admit that they suited him perfectly, he was a stunning and beautiful sight. Mario's eyes traveled along his frame and he seemed to like what he saw, either, because his eyes dilated and his breathing became faster. Marco tensed as the brunette's gaze was caught by his tattoos, but Mario only raised his eyebrow in a questioning and amused way.

“Uhu, Shakespeare and tattoos, what a mixture! You have to tell me more about your wild youth, I guess,” he drawled and Marco felt utterly relieved by the other one's reaction.

“If you really want to know more about it,” he murmured and Mario nodded his head. “I want to know all about you, every little tiny thing,” he said hoarsely and Marco almost pinched himself again to make sure that he wasn't dreaming. He was still searching for an answer as Mario handed him the bag he had brought with him. Marco opened it and found a bottle with a light wine that would match perfectly with the meal inside, together with another package.

“Wow, the wine is perfect for what I want to serve,” he stated, smiling widely at the younger male. “You must have read my thoughts!”

“Maybe, we are some kind of soul-mates or something like that,” Mario joked, but with a serious undertone in his warm voice and Marco wished with all his heart that this would be true. The air was filled with some kind of magic as they stood in the small hall, looking each other deep in the eyes. Mario finally broke the spell as he inhaled the delicious smell that made its way to them from the kitchen.

“Hm, it's smells so delicious! Are you gonna feed me now or is it just for the eyes and the nose? I have to admit that I'm pretty hungry,” he remarked, grinning mischievously, and Marco blinked and tried to clear his mind, feeling dense again.

“Uh, of course, come in, Mario!” he beckoned him to the living room where he had set up the table while he considered the other package that was wrapped in colored paper, carefully and lovingly.

“This is for later, don't you dare opening it now!” Mario told him firmly and Marco hesitantly put the gift aside, but he couldn't help it that his eyes grazed the present several times.

Mario grinned. “You're curious like a little child, you know that, right?” he stated amused. Marco blushed again. “There was no need to bring me a gift, at all,” he mumbled. “I didn't do anything to deserve one.”

Mario became serious again. “You did, Marco, believe me, you did. I cannot tell you thank you enough for what you have done for Erik. I have never seen my little brother so happy and open within at least two years. We are closer than we ever were and it's wonderful!”

Marco swallowed. He was touched, but, he didn't want Mario's gratitude, but his love. He cleared his throat and pulled himself together with effort. “It was my pleasure, Mario. Erik deserves it. How about I feed you now? It would be a shame to let the food go cold.”

Mario beamed at him. “That would be great, I'm starving!” he agreed and Marco headed to the kitchen to serve the food. The way to a man's heart is through his stomach and Marco was determined to win the brunette's heart, no matter what.

 

\----------------------------------------------------

 

Everything was perfect. The meal was delicious, the wine was very drinkable and their conversation was easy and lighthearted, but also serious and intimate. Marco had set the table with both, cutlery and chopsticks and it turned out that they both preferred the chopsticks.

Somewhere after the soup, Mario had leaned over the table to feed Marco with a crispy prawn with his sticks and Marco had rewarded him by feeding him with a cross piece of the duck. It didn't take long until they fed each other instead of eating from their own bowls and they had fun and rosy cheeks as they did so, snickering and looking each other deep in the eyes.

Mario had told him that Erik stayed by his friend Matze again and Marco was happy to see that Mario didn't check the watch or looked as if he wanted to leave any time soon.

“Tell me about your youth, how old are you?” Mario demanded between the bites. “You look pretty young for a teacher.”

Marco pulled a face. “Uhm yes, I left school with seventeen. I began to study right after school, because I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher. I passed my exams with twenty two and made my two years internship after that. It is my second year as a regular teacher. I'm twenty-six. My teachers weren't like I thought that teachers should be, at all.” His voice had become more and more quiet and he swallowed hard and stared down at his bowl.

“You were not like the norm, right?” Mario asked gently, laying his hand above Marco's. “If you left school with seventeen, then you must be very intelligent, right?”

Marco only nodded. “I see. Your teachers didn't know what to do with a pupil who was bored to death and always disturbed the courses.” Marco nodded again. “And because you were bored and rebellious you decided to wear some tattoos. Because, people with an high IQ have to be fat and ugly looking grinds instead of incredible handsome and good looking slim young man.”

Marco blushed for the felt fiftieth time. “Uhm, yes,” he mumbled.

Mario chuckled quietly, the soft laughter Marco had come to adore and love so much. “You're the exception from the rule then, I guess. Because you are an incredible handsome and good looking slim young man,” he stated, dryly and Marco's cheeks were burning again.

“Erik is lucky to have you as his teacher, Marco,” Mario said gently and Marco finally was able to look at him again. “Thank you,” he whispered hoarsely, before he stood up rather abruptly. “I should have a look at the dessert,” he said, rushing into the kitchen. He took several deep breaths and when he had found his self-control again, certain that he wouldn't start to cry in front of his guest, he took the baked bananas out of the oven and the ice-cream out of the fridge.

When he came back into the living room, Mario smiled at him, changing the topic of their conversation. They fed each other with the dessert like they had done with the main course and when they were sated and full as a tick, Mario helped him to clear the table and carry the dishes back into the kitchen. Marco put the leftovers into the fridge and left the dishes were they were, not willing to risk that Mario would think about leaving just because he was busied in the kitchen.

When he entered the living room again, Mario had made himself comfortable on the couch again, the gift he had brought lying in front of him on the coffee table. Marco took his glass and sat down beside him, leaving only a few inches between their bodies. Mario smiled and jerked his head to the present.

“It would be the right time to open it now,” he remarked and Marco took the gift with trembling fingers and carefully and slowly unwrapped the package. When he finally had pulled the paper from the book, he stared at it, stunned and speechless. His fingers stroked tenderly over the adorned front and he swallowed hard and blinked against the sudden tears that shot into his eyes.

“I – I – I don't know what I shall say, I'm – I'm speechless!” he eventually croaked out. “This is – it's too expensive, I cannot accept this!”

Mario laid his hand on his trembling fingers still stroking the book. “Of course, you can, Marco,” he said softly. “You told me how much this special book you inherited from your beloved grandfather means to you and when I read in your book, I saw that it is pretty damaged. I just thought that you would like to have a new one to go easy on the one you had gotten from your grandfather. It was published in the same year as the book he once had bought when he was a young boy. Of course, it isn't new, it's an antiquarian book like yours, but, it's in better shape and you can use it for your subject matters, so your beloved original won't get more damaged than it already is.”

Marco looked up, blinking and biting his lip. “Thank you,” was all that came out of his mouth, but, it seemed to be enough, because the younger one took the present from him and carefully laid it back on the coffee table, his eyes never leaving Marco's face as he did so.

Marco unconsciously tilted his head to the side, closing his eyes, as Mario now moved closer, invading his personal space and gently pressing his soft and warm lips on Marco's.


	8. Love And Passion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco and Mario had dinner and they kissed for the first time. Will they give in to their desire?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you don't want to read about two incredible handsome young men crazy in love giving in to their desire and making passionate love, then, you better stop reading this story now. If you have no problems with that, then, just enjoy reading this chapter.
> 
> I have no words for how amazing and wonderful you are and how much your support means to me. Please, keep up with that and leave kudos or write comments if you liked the new chapter as much as the last ones!

Marco felt the gentle pressure of Mario's soft and warm lips on his own and his world shrank to the small spot where their mouths touched.

Nothing else was important any longer and if the house had collapsed around him, he wouldn't have noticed it. The only thing that mattered to him right now was Mario's kiss and he mused briefly about the question how it could be that such an innocent kiss with closed mouths could be that world-shaking and earth-shattering, before he stopped thinking at all and started to only – feel.

He felt the warm skin of Mario's soft-rounded rosy cheeks against his own, soft and gentle and without the scratchy feeling of a daily stubble - Mario must have shaved before he had come to visit him, he felt the warm and tender touch of Mario's hand ruffling the short hair at the nape of his neck and most of all, he felt those wonderful tempting warm lips pressing against his own, questioningly, but also firmly and without hesitation. Marco's arms wrapped themselves around the younger one to their own will, pulling him closer and Mario shifted his weight and straddled him, pressing him against the thick cushion of the seat back. Marco's hand traveled up on Mario's shoulders, tousling the short brown hair and pulling the brunette closer so he could feel his lips better on his own.

The famous German footballer reacted to Marco's wordless invitation and his tongue darted out of his mouth and licked teasingly over Marco's sensitive bottom lip. The world began to shake, ruled by this incredible kiss and Marco was glad that he was sitting on the couch, because he probably would have fallen down on the floor if he had still stood upright. His legs felt like jelly and he was so hard that it was almost hurting, and this although nothing had happened despite this rather innocent kiss with closed lips. There was no way that he could hide his arousal from the other male, because Mario sat on his lap and the unmistakable proof of his desire pressed eagerly against Mario's thigh.

Mario didn't seem to mind though, because his tongue dipped against his lips and Marco gladly obeyed the gentle order and opened them to let the young man in. He greeted the cheeky tongue with his own and they began to dance around each other, playfully dueling for dominance. Marco couldn't hold back his aroused moans, strangled by their kiss and Mario answered with soft sighs, tilting Marco's head back and taking complete control of the kiss.

Marco had never been kissed like this before and all he could do was give in and surrender to the young man who had become the center of his world within only five days. Mario kissed him deeply and thoroughly, exploring the sweet cavern of Marco's mouth in places Marco was astonished that Mario's agile and clever tongue could reach them and he kissed him back with all he had, his body, his mind, his heart and his soul, knowing that he would gladly die right now, if the last thing he felt was Mario's kiss on his lips.

When he thought that he would black out from the overwhelming sensation and the lack of air in his lungs, Mario hesitantly drew back from his bruised lips, looking at him. He still held Marco's head in the same position with his hands and Marco had to look up at him to meet his eyes.

The sight greeting his loving gaze simply took his breath away. Mario's eyes were dark with his own arousal, his pupils dilated to full rounds and his hair was ruffled and tousled. The younger one was breathing heavily and his boyish cheeks were flushed in a wonderful pink. But, the most wonderful sight were his lips, swollen and bruised from this incredible kiss, shining red and wet and they were smiling, smiling just for him, a tender and loving smile that made Marco's heart race and his cock twitch and weep with happiness and anticipation.

Time stood still as they looked at each other, until Mario finally was the first who broke the stunned silence. “Wow!” he whispered and then: “I know that we know each other for only five days, but, I love you, Marco. I have never loved anyone the way I love you and I know for sure that I will never ever love someone else again like I love you.”

Marco blinked, completely taken by surprise. He had awaited something like _'I want you'_ or maybe even _'I'm in love with you'_ , but not this outstanding declaration of love. All he could do was stare at Mario not sure if he was dreaming or not. He was a simple unimportant teacher and Mario was one of the most famous and well-known celebrities in Germany, the one footballer who had made Germany the champions of the world again, after waiting for this for more than twenty years and he probably could have had everyone he wanted to have.

When he didn't reply, Mario's face saddened. He tried to pull back and this broke the spell and made Mario realize that he hadn't answered to this wonderful confession.

“I love you, too, Mario,” he said, his voice shaky and rough, but firm and without any doubt. “I love you more than I ever thought that I could love someone and I will never stop loving you.”

Mario relaxed, melting against him and for one moment, he wasn't the strong and caring elder brother he had been during the last days, but only a young man deeply in love who hadn't been sure if the one he loved returned his feelings. He buried his face in the crook of Marco's neck and mumbled brokenly: “You nearly gave me heart attack as you didn't answer, you know that, don't you?”

Marco stroked his back to soothe him and couldn't help but snicker with delight and stupid happiness. “I thought that you had already noticed how dense I can be. I continue to make a complete fool of myself whenever you are around and I thought that it is pretty obvious that this is because I'm head over heels and hopelessly crazy in love with you.”

Mario chuckled at his neck. “I'm relieved to hear that.” He lifted his head up and kissed Marco again, and this time, passion exploded between them. This kiss was all about lips and teeth clashing together, tongues that tried to take over control, to possess and to claim and about showing their burning desire to each other.

“Bed!” Was Marco finally able to gasp out, clutching at Mario who rubbed his backside against Marco's throbbing arousal while he possessed his mouth roughly and hard. Mario drew back from his tingling lips, laughing breathlessly and very pleased and stood up with shaky legs. He offered Marco his hand and Marco let himself be pulled up to his feet and into a tight embrace. They kissed again, not able to let go of each other and Marco was sure that this was the best day of his entire life and it also seemed that it would even get better than it already was...

 

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They had made their way to the bedroom, kissing and stroking, stumbling through the small corridor, their longing whispers and quiet moans filling the air. They had begun to undress one another on their way to their final destination, wanting nothing more than to feel each other, feel their naked skin; and their clothes left a trace from the living room to the bedroom until they were standing before the bed in all their naked glory.

Now, Marco lay on his back on the bed and Mario was busied with driving him crazy by following every line of his tattoos with his cheeky tongue. “Mario, please, I need more!” he groaned, but Mario only shook his head.

“Oh no, don't you dare moving! I wanted to do this since I saw your tattoos and you will lie still and let me do this!” he commanded, licking over another line on Marco's forearm. He wriggled above Marco's body as he did so and Marco arched desperately into the touch, already halfway out of his mind with desire. His painfully hard dick brushed against Mario's six-pack and more pre-come dropped out of the sensitive slit. Mario hadn't touched him there, apart from the movements of his body, but Marco was embarrassingly close to his orgasm just from the brunette caressing his tattoos. He wanted, no he needed to feel the other male as close as possible and he grabbed blindly for the drawer of his bedside table.

Mario lifted his head as he heard Marco rummaging in the drawer with one hand and he reached out to help him. When he had managed to take the bottle with the glutinous liquid and the package with the condoms out of the drawer, he placed them on the bedside table and looked at Marco. “Are you sure?” he whispered tenderly, stroking his face with gentle fingertips. Marco vigorously nodded his head. Nothing else would satisfy him than to feel Mario as deep inside him as possible.

“Yes, I'm sure. I've never been so sure about something in my whole life. Please...” he whimpered, crazy with need and ardor.

Mario soothed him with a kiss. “Hush, you don't need to beg, my beautiful Marco. I only thought that you might want a longer foreplay to get ready,” he said and his strangled voice made clear that he was as impatient as Marco was.

Marco chuckled sheepishly. “I'm ready since I first saw you. Believe me, I don't need a foreplay. All I need is to feel you!” he confessed, his cheeks burning, and Mario growled and his gaze became heated and possessively.

“All right, then, I will make you mine now, my beautiful Romeo.” He opened the bottle and squeezed a generous amount of the liquid in his hand.

Marco gasped out as he felt the cool lube at his puckered entrance. “Romeo?” he asked and Mario silenced his next moan with another passionate kiss. “Of course, you're my Romeo and I'm your Julian,” he snickered when he drew back from his lips to look at him. “I trapped you like Juliet trapped her Romeo and I will never ever set you free again.”

Marco shuddered as the clever fingers worked him open, finding his sweet spot easily. Mario watched him closely and he growled contentedly as Marco's reaction proved to him that he was on the right track. “You have done this before, right?” the blonde moaned, as Mario continued to stimulate his prostate with his fingertips, pressing into it and sending jolts of hot white pleasure through every cell of Marco's body. “With a guy, I mean – oh God yes, right there!”

Mario bent down and nibbled at his lips. “Yes and I always liked it better than with a girl. But, it was never like it is now, because I never truly loved someone before. Not the way I love you, Marco.”

Marco wrapped his arms around Mario's neck and pulled him down on his body. “I love you, too, and I'm ready – more than ready. If you go on like this, then, it will be over very soon!” he groaned, his body trembling with the effort to keep his self-control and not to come just from Mario's fingers buried inside him.

Mario's tongue slipped into his ear. “Yeah, I can feel that. You want me that bad?”

“Even more, Mario, please!” He arched his back and Mario finally took pity on him and pulled his fingers out. Marco whimpered because of the loss and the empty feeling, but Mario kissed him again and opened the packing of the condom. “Let me do this!” Marco ordered and took the condom to roll it over Mario's proud manhood. This time, it was Mario's mouth that escaped a needy groan and he began to shiver as Marco lined him up with the lube.

When Marco was done, Mario covered him with his body and Marco eagerly spread his legs and wrapped them around Mario's back, just where his shoulder-blades began. He lifted his hips from the mattress and cried out with relief, as Mario finally entered him, looking him deep in the eyes as he searched for his way into the tempting tight heat of Marco's secret core while the blonde's willing body swallowed him without any attempt to fight against the intrusion.

It had never been that easy and never been that good. Nothing had ever felt so right and so wonderful and the sensation of Mario slowly filling his empty body, his soul and his heart to the hilt, stretching him perfectly and hitting his sweet spot right with the first thrust almost made him come instantly.

“Oh God, Marco, I don't know how long I can stand this!” Mario confessed and his voice was so rough and hoarse that Marco almost didn't recognize it. He bucked his hips up. “That's okay, just take me! What are you waiting for?”

Mario growled and entered him fully with one last violent snap of his hips. He kissed him, thrusting with his tongue into Marco's mouth while he began to move his hips in the same punishing rhythm, letting go of his iron self-control and pushing into the blonde hard and fast, battering his sensitive nub mercilessly as he possessed him completely and unquestioningly.

Marco met his thrusts with the same unrestrained passion while his aching cock slick with his arousal rubbed against Mario's strong-muscled abdomen with every move. He felt unbearable pleasure building in his groin and at the end of his spine, spreading out from there in every part of his body; and he raised his backside higher to feel Mario deeper and better as he already did.

Mario had braced his hands against the pillow at each side of his head to avoid crushing him with his weight, and his gaze held Marco's as he pounded into him, nearing his own orgasm. Marco could see the strong arousal and desire in his dark eyes and the drops of sweat on his forehead, his handsome face suffused with his passion and his love for the young teacher.

“I'm close!” was all Marco could pant before his climax overtook him, his eyes never leaving Mario's as he arched his back, shooting his exuberant ecstasy in fast jets between their bellies, painting both of their bodies with creamy white stripes of his hot release. He moaned and shuddered in time to the jets, letting the brunette see every bit of his pleasure and lust.

Mario rewarded him by showing him his own ecstasy and excessive lust, not holding back his hoarse cry as he followed Marco over the edge and into the sweet oblivion of his own forceful orgasm. Marco felt a little bit disappointed that he couldn't sense Mario filling him with his semen, but, he dwelt in every shiver and shudder Mario's ecstasy pulled from him, knowing that there would be a time when they would be able to feel each other unquestioningly and without any barrier.

They clung helplessly to one another until the sensations of their shared passion eventually faded and the warm and soft waves of the afterglow were rolling through them.

Marco dropped down on the mattress and Mario slumped down on him, almost crushing him. For a while they just listened to their heavy breathing and Marco unconsciously stroked Mario's back. Mario rewarded him with soft noises that sounded like the sated purr of a tomcat and Marco closed his eyes and inhaled deeply the wonderful scents of fresh sweat, their lovemaking and their intermingled aftershaves. It smelled like home and Marco relaxed and knew that he would never feel lonely again as long as Mario was by his side.

When Mario finally raised his head, Marco smiled at him. “This was amazing,” he stated, happily and satisfied.

His breath faltered as Mario smiled back, gently and happily, his eyes shining with love and satisfaction. The brunette stroked his heated face and his loving gaze was as intense as a soft caress.

“You're right my wonderful Romeo, this was truly amazing,” he replied, kissing him on his lips.

“I love you, Mario, you know that, right?” Marco asked huskily when they parted again.

“Yes, Marco, I know that. I love you, too.” Mario replied tenderly.

And this was all they needed to know.


	9. The Right One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after Mario's and Marco's first night. Mario wants to return the favor, but he has some issues with that... How will Marco react?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will continue with the plot again, I promise you. But, this chapter wanted to be written and I actually find the topic of this chapter rather important. But, it turned out to be hopelessly romantic and fluffy and I'm sorry for that. I hope that you like romance and fluff.  
> As I said, the next chapter will focus on the plot and Erik's crush again...  
> It's pretty late and I reread it only one time. I will look for typos and errors tomorrow.
> 
> You are absolutely amazing and wonderful and I'm addicted to write for you! Please, let me know if you liked my fluffy romantic chapter as much as the others, thank you for all of you who will do!

Mario woke up early in the morning lying next to the handsome young teacher who had become the love of his life within five days. Marco had curled himself around Mario and was sleeping peacefully at his side, one arm and one leg wrapped around Mario in both, a protective and possessive way.

Mario carefully turned on his side, trying not to wake up the man lying next to him. He still could hardly believe it that his secret dream had come true. He had known that he swung both ways from his early teenage years on and he also had always known that he preferred to be with a guy instead of a girl.

But, he always had wanted to play football and being a footballer with a boyfriend simply wasn't possible these days. So, he had had secret encounters with some boys and official girlfriends from time to time. He had always tried to be a good boyfriend to them, but he knew that he had failed oftentimes enough, his longing for another male sometimes becoming too strong to resist it.

He had never thought that he would find someone like Marco, someone who made him feel whole – someone he could love so much that nothing else was important any longer. Marco was worth taking the risk and Mario would do everything he could to make this relationship work.

He reached out with his hand and let his fingertips glide over the warm and rosy cheek covered with a blonde daily stubble, following the soft round and the jawline until he reached the sensitive lips still swollen slightly from their passionate kisses the previous night.

“I love you so,” he whispered raptly. “I'm so in love with you, totally hopelessly in love with you.”

“Hm, that's good, because I'm totally hopelessly in love with you, too,” Marco murmured pretty smug, his eyes still closed, but, with a happy smile on his handsome features.

Mario let out a startled cry. “How long are you awake?” he croaked out. Marco's smile deepened. “For a while,” he admitted. “Do you want to finally give me my good-morning kiss or do I have to suffer for a while longer?” he asked in a lazy voice, not bothering to open his eyes, and Mario snickered, annoyed, pleased, astonished and helplessly at the same time.

“You're mean, you know that, right?” he complained and Marco chuckled quietly, a wonderful sound that went straight into Mario's groin making his Marco-morning-erection even harder.

“Yes, I know, but, you love me anyway. Now, give me my good-morning kiss!” he ordered and Mario obeyed, pressing his lips onto Marco's sleep-warm mouth. Marco pulled him down and shifted his weight and Mario suddenly lay on his back and trapped underneath Marco's strong and perfectly toned body. They hadn't bothered to dress before they had fallen asleep and their cocks brushed against each other as Marco now took control of the kiss, pressing him into the mattress. Mario moaned with the sensation and the first drop of pre-come leaked out of the sensitive slit.

Mario moaned again, hoarsely and almost desperately, the needy sound vibrating in his throat and Marco answered with a content purr while his hands roamed over the younger one's flanks. Mario's hardness twitched, searching for friction and release and Marco's proud manhood responded instantly and strained against Mario's hipbone, leaving a wet trace on his skin.

The previous night, the blonde had surrendered to him, unquestioningly, but this morning, he had taken the lead and Mario knew quite well what that meant.

Not, that he wasn't willing to give it to his beloved teacher. Quite the opposite, Mario wanted it too, for the very first time in his life, he actually wanted to give himself to another man. He had done it before, but, he had never truly wanted it with all his heart. He had always thought that he had to return the favor and maybe that was the reason why he had never been able to really enjoy it. He tried to pull away from the first man he actually wanted to call his boyfriend and after another try, Marco raised his head to look at him.

He looked simply adorable with his flushed skin and his ruffled quiff, a hickey visible on his collarbone. Marco's wonderful blue eyes were dilated with arousal and his lips were shining wet and in a wonderful red.

“What's wrong?” he asked in a husky voice, stroking Mario's heated face.

Mario bit his lip. “Nothing. It's just – you want to have me right?” he murmured sheepishly. Marco smiled tenderly at him and stroked his face again. “Only if you want it, too, Mario,” he assured him gently.

“I want it. I never really wanted it before. But, I don't want you to be disappointed after wards. I – I have problems to come this way,” he mumbled and his face was burning with his embarrassment now. He avoided Marco's eyes until the elder one laid his hand under his chin and lifted it up.

“We don't have to do it that way if you don't find it pleasurable. I could never enjoy something you don't like Mario.” he said sincerely and honestly.

His gaze was full of love and understanding and Mario smiled at him. “Yes, I really want you to take me, I only want to apologize if...”

Marco bent down and silenced him with a tender kiss. “Please, don't apologize. We will take it slow and I promise you that I won't expect anything from you but honesty. If you say stop, then I will stop. No matter when it will be. Plus, I want you to promise me something, as well,” he said and kissed him on his nose.

Mario looked at him, bewildered and just a tiny bit mistrustfully. Marco grinned. “You have to promise that you will stop thinking. Just feel. Don't try to 'chase' your final goal. I want you to just enjoy the ride.”

Mario swallowed, unsure, but, then he nodded his head, smiling at his amazing boyfriend with rosy cheeks. “I think I can do this,” he agreed happily and Marco rewarded him with another passionate kiss. “Just feel. Close your eyes and just feel,” he whispered at his lips and Mario obeyed and closed his eyes, focusing on the sensation of Marco's lips caressing his mouth.

His arousal that had faded a little bit with the needed, but nonetheless awkward conversation, came back with so much force that he arched his back, moaning loudly.

“Yes, just like that. Just feel!” Marco encouraged him, reaching out with his hand for the bottle on the bedside table. He covered his fingers with the cool liquid and Mario instinctively tensed as he felt them near his secret entrance.

“Shshsh,” Marco soothed him, stroking circles around the sensitive hole, while he slipped with his cheeky tongue into Mario's ear. Mario relaxed again when Marco did nothing but massaging his perineum and the skin around his puckered rosebud and he gasped with surprise as he felt one finger deep inside him all of a sudden. Marco snickered and moved it slowly forth and back and Mario relaxed again, enjoying the gentle ministration. It didn't take long until Marco had found what he probably had been searching for, but, instead of stimulating his sweet spot mercilessly now just as Mario had expected it, he only stroked him there gently now and then as if it were by accident, nibbling at his earlobe and softly purring in his ear.

Marco was a very patient man, Mario had known this before, because only a patient man was able to deal with his brother, but, he hadn't known _how_ patient Marco already was. Mario lost track of time while he lay there, enjoying what Marco did to him, his eyes still closed and his lips tingling from their kisses. He was more than ready when Marco added a second and then a third finger and he wondered briefly when he had spread his legs so wide and begun to moan constantly with the sensation. It was almost torturing to wait and hope for Marco grazing his sensitive nub again and the waiting aroused him almost more than the final happening itself.

He was dazed and dizzy with lust when Marco pulled his fingers out, making short work of the package with the condom and lining himself up. Mario kept his eyes shut, only listened to the unmistakable rustling sounds. Then, he felt Marco's weight upon him again and his impressive length gently asking for permission to enter him.

He tensed again and Marco kissed him on his cheek. “Don't think, just feel, my beautiful Julian. You trapped your Romeo and he is asking you to trust him. Do you trust me, Mario?” he whispered and Mario relaxed, completely, raising his hips invitingly. “Yes, my Romeo, I trust you!” he replied and Marco thrust with his tongue deep into the sweet cavern of his mouth mirroring what he did with his hard spear. Mario felt Marco taking him slowly but without any doubts or hesitation, demanding his sweet submission and all he could do was to obey and surrender to his gorgeous boyfriend, totally and unquestioningly.

Marco buried himself to the hilt into his body and then, he stayed still and was content with just kissing Mario senseless. “What are you waiting for?” Mario finally gasped out, crazy with wanting and ardor. Marco chuckled and Mario's leaking cock trapped between their bellies twitched by this sound. It seemed that his manhood was as addicted to Marco's chuckle as its owner himself.

“For you stopping thinking, of course,” Marco murmured at his lips. “I can 'hear' you thinking. Thinking about when I will start to move. Thinking about if you will come or not. I told you to stop it and just feel and there won't happen anything until you do so.”

“Uhm, that's not so easy!” Mario complained and Marco let his dick twitch again with another soft and amused chuckle. “Yes, it is. You just have to let go and learn to trust me.” He raised his head to look at him stroking his sweaty cheek. “You will come, my sweet Julian, one way or the other. I would never leave you unsatisfied. So, stop worrying about something you don't have to worry about, at all. Just enjoy our closeness.”

He shut him up with a passionate kiss before Mario could answer to that statement and after a while, Mario stopped thinking and began to feel. He was stretched wide and filled as he had never been filled before, but, it felt so damn good and right – so perfect. Marco's proud weapon, soft and smooth velvet over rock-hard steel pulsed slightly against his sweet spot and Mario focused on this feeling and became deaf and blind for anything else, playing with the blonde's clever tongue that invited his own to dance with it.

When Marco started to move, pulling almost out and pushing back all the way in, he was totally taken by surprise and cried out, aroused and startled. Marco let go of his lips and buried his face at his throat, licking and nibbling, carefully to not leave a visible mark there. His rhythm was slow and steady and Mario arched into the thrusts to feel him as deep as possible inside his secret core. They moved in perfect unison and Marco tickled his neck as he began to whisper words of love and devotion against his skin, telling him how wonderful, beautiful and sweet he was, how lovable and adorable. Mario listened to these words with rapt devotion and he almost didn't notice the pleasure building in his groin.

Just when Marco sped up all of a sudden, changing his angle and battering his sweet spot with every thrust now, he realized that he was so close to the point of no return that he couldn't do anything than crying out with the sensation of the most incredible climax he had ever had. A hot wave of pleasure and ecstasy shot from the small spot deep inside him out in his whole body, taking him away with its force and intensity and he arched wildly and screamed again, shooting his overwhelming pleasure in fast jets against Marco's sweaty abdomen. His cock twitched helplessly as he released himself between their connected bodies and Marco growled, pleased and contentedly, taking him with one final thrust and shuddering heavily through his own ecstasy as he followed Mario over the edge, reaching his own height of satisfaction and sweet oblivion.

When it eventually was over after what had felt like an eternity, Mario lay there and gasped for air, trying to catch his breath again, wondering how such pleasure could actually be possible.

Suddenly, he felt tears in his eyes. Tears of joy and relief. He was okay, nothing was wrong with him. It only had had to be the right one, the one he truly loved. Marco raised his head and tenderly kissed the tears away that rolled silently over his face. “It's okay, my beloved Mario. I'm here. I got you,” he murmured soothingly and softly.

Mario sniffed and smiled shakily at him. He had never felt as happy as he felt right now and he knew that Marco could see his happiness and his love in his eyes, just like he could see Marco's.  
Marco smiled back and then kissed his way down on his face until he reached his mouth.

They kissed and for just one tender moment, they were only one being with two bodies and two heartbeats, but with only one mind and one soul.


	10. Mixed Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco and Mario are together now and struggle with their feelings and the possible reactions of the other ones while Erik struggles with his feelings for the new pupil...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter goes on with the plot as I promised you and it includes three POVs, Mario's, Marco's and Erik's. They all are dealing with their feelings now and also with the difficulties these feelings could arouse. There isn't much action, but, I think that this chapter is important for the next happenings.
> 
> You are amazing and wonderful and I love to write this story for you. Please, continue with your support and let me know if you liked this chapter, too, leave kudos or comments and tell me your opinion!

Erik let his bag fall down on his desk, shooting a quick glance at the other side of the room where the new pupil was sitting. Nuri hadn't shown up until now and Erik felt a little bit disappointed. He had hoped to see him before the crowd would arrive and he had taken the earlier bus because of that.  
A heartfelt sigh escaped his lips, but, as he looked at the other desk again, he saw Nuri's old leather bag on the other one's chair, almost hidden by the desktop and his heart skipped a beat. Nuri was already there, he only had left the classroom, maybe, because he had wanted to grab some food they sold in the kiosk nearby.

He mused briefly about leaving the room and searching for the black-haired teenager, more a young man than boy yet, but then, he decided against it. The room was empty, because it was really early and he wanted to use the calm before the storm to look in his book one more time before the classes began. He pulled his book out of his bag and dropped down on his chair, wanting to read the scene they had had to learn for today one more time. He had read it with his brother the previous evening after Mario had picked him up from his friend Matze, but, he still had problems wit the old English of the middle ages and it wouldn't do any harm to read it again.

Mario had been different when he had picked him up, Erik had never seen him that happy and thoughtfully at the same time, even though Mario had tried hard to hide his feelings from him, wearing the mask of the caring brother instead of the expression of someone crazy in love.

Erik didn't know with whom Mario had had dinner Saturday evening and he hadn't dared to ask, but he was pretty sure that it hadn't been AK. Mario had never looked like this during the time she had been his girlfriend, even not in the early days after they had come together. He also suspected that he would have noticed it if Mario had called her and he had broken his head about the question who could be that special to make his beloved brother beam like this.

The only person he himself would have found worthy and remarkable enough for his wonderful brother was his class-teacher Mr. Reus, but, Mr. Reus was a man and Mario had never shown any interest in men so far, at least Erik had never seen it, so it had to be a girl Mario had met recently without telling Erik about her.

Erik himself longed for telling Mario about his feelings for the new pupil, but, he hadn't wanted to trouble him more than he already had during the last days and so he had only spoken to Matze about his feelings. Matze was his best friend and the only one Erik truly trusted, except for Mario and Mr. Reus, of course. Matze didn't care about his famous brother, for him, Mario was only Erik's elder stepbrother as he was for his teacher and Erik shared most if his secrets with him.

A silent sound broke in on his thoughts and he raised his head from his book, realizing that he had read the same page for at least ten times without actually knowing what he had read.

Nuri had entered the room, putting a bottle containing coca cola on the desk and searching in his bag for something. He wore his black leather jacket and biker boots underneath his washed out jeans and Erik's heart started to beat faster. Nuri looked like a rebel and he reminded Erik of Marlon Brando or James Dean, only with black hair. The raven-haired teenager moved with the elegance and suppressed strength of a black panther and Erik sighed wistfully as he watched him without noticing it.

Nuri let go of his bag and looked up, considering Erik from underneath his long thick eyelashes with thoughtful dark-brown eyes. “Got something on my face?” he finally asked and his dark, slightly mocking voice made Erik shiver. He blushed and looked away. “N-n-no,” he stammered, feeling stupid and ashamed because Nuri had caught him staring.

“You're cute when you're blushing.”

“Wh-wh-what?” Erik cautiously looked up again and to his surprise, Nuri was smiling at him. Not the usual mocking smile he normally gifted his other classmates with, but a true and honest smile and Erik's heart missed several beats before it started to race. Erik bit his lip, blushing even more and Nuri's smile deepened. Erik couldn't help but smile back and for one moment, time stood still as they looked each other deep in the eyes, smiling shyly at one another.

But then, the door opened again as someone forcefully pushed against it and the sound made Erik flinch and caused Nuri to put the bored and impassive mask back on his handsome features instantly, before he continued to rummage in his bag again as if nothing had happened between them.

Erik's classmates arrived laughing and shouting and Erik looked down at his book and inwardly crawled back into his snail shell, his face wearing a similar expression as Nuri's.

 

\-------------------------------------------------

 

Mario cautiously opened the door to the locker-room, steeling himself for the friendly mockery he had had to endure during the last days. Ann-Kathrin hadn't accepted the break up of their 'relationship' and had called every member of his team she knew well enough to have their numbers. She had called Bastian and Philipp, Manuel and Thomas and even Franck. She had called the girlfriends of some of his teammates and his friends had let him pay for this by teasing him mercilessly.

He didn't care about her attempts to win him back - that wasn't what he was worried about. But, his friends knew him well enough to notice his changed state of mind, to see his happiness and the light in his eyes and he knew that they would be able to put two and two together and realize that he had someone new. He tried hard to hide his feelings, but he knew that he had failed the second Thomas looked up, considering him with narrowed eyes.

“Don't tell me that you made it up with her again!” he shouted and Mario flinched slightly. “Uhm, Thomas, my hearing works fine, you don't have to yell at me!” he complained, trying to change the topic. Bastian and Manuel now looked at him, too; and Mario groaned inwardly, wishing for hole in the ground to open and swallow him.

“No, I didn't make it up with her,” he said as the curious glances of the other were burning a hole in his face instead.

Thomas pursed his lips, grinning rather smug. “But, you got laid!” he stated and Bastian and Manuel now watched him very carefully. “Yes, Thomas is right! Who is she? Do we know her?” Bastian inquired and Mario suppressed a frustrated groan.

He hadn't 'gotten laid'. He had made love with the most wonderful young man in the entire world, but, this was nothing he could say to his colleagues. Neither of them would have understood it, except for Philipp perhaps. He shot a quick glance to the bench where the captain was sitting and Philipp gifted him with a brief reassuring smile. He hadn't said anything until now and only shook his head as the other ones continued to tease him, trying to find out who it was making Mario's eyes shine and his lips smile that dreamily.

“Leave him alone,” Philipp now ordered, his voice calm and firm. “If Mario thinks that there is something he wants to tell us, he will do it. Stop teasing him and focus on your job!”

Thomas and Bastian scowled at their captain, but they obeyed, mumbling something that sounded like 'We were only joking' and then, changed the topic, but, it was already too late. Some of Mario's happiness had vanished and he realized that having a relationship with Marco would be much harder than he had expected it to be. He had suspected that it would be hard, but, he hadn't known how hard it would be until now and he swallowed, trying not to let his mixed feelings show.

 

\------------------------------------------------------

 

Marco had gone to school today with mixed feelings, too. On one side, he was happier than he had ever been before and a happy smile lit up his handsome features whenever he thought of the previous two days, especially Saturday night and Sunday morning. After their second passionate lovemaking they had enjoyed a lazy and very long breakfast and talked about nothing and everything. Mario had stayed with him until the middle of the afternoon, before he had left to pick up his younger brother and spend the evening with him.

Marco himself had prepared the new subject matter and read a book before he had gone to bed. Of course, he had talked to Mario on the phone before he had settled in for the night, wishing him good night before had crawled into his bed, the pillows and sheets still smelling of Mario and their shared passion. He had snuggled close under the covers and embraced his pillow, wishing it was Mario instead, before he had fallen asleep and dreamed of Mario and their love.

On the other side, he wasn't that naïve to think that it would be easy to hide his feelings from Erik and he really wasn't sure about the teenager's reaction whenever he learned about him and Mario. Not to mention that the subject matter of their English class didn't really help him with hiding his feelings.

Teaching Romeo and Juliet to a class of giggling teenagers was hard enough without being crazy in love. Marco had a hard time keeping himself from sighing wistfully, blushing and grinning stupidly while two of the pupils read the romantic scenes, sometimes exaggerating things while reciting the pathetic words, causing the whole class to snicker and giggle except for three people – Marco himself, Erik and Nuri.

Marco couldn't allow himself to join the laughter as their teacher, although he had to smirk from time to time. He knew that his pupils didn't mean anything bad, they had only fun with the story and enjoyed themselves and Marco let them, happy that his class was motivated and normally behaved rather well, because this was pretty rare these days. He admonished them to slow down a little bit from time to time and they always did and the lessons went on then more or less undisturbed.

Erik and Nuri never joined the giggling and laughing, either; and Marco wasn't sure why this was the case, but, he noticed that they looked at each other now and then, and after the third time, he realized what their glances meant and couldn't help but be worried about it.

Not, because Erik and Nuri were both male, that was something he could understand quite well, but, he knew Erik's background and his troubles, and he knew Nuri's background, as well, at least a little bit; and he already could sense the storm that was nasty brewing at the horizon. All he could do was being there for both of them if the storm would finally break out.

He even didn't consider to tell Mario about it, Erik would tell his brother himself when he was ready and he didn't want to betray the boy's trust in him more than he already had by having slept with Mario behind his back.

When the class eventually was over - thank God it was the last class for today, he heaved a relieved sigh, putting his things back into his old bag. His pupils stormed out of the classroom, eager to catch the next bus and when he looked up, only Erik and Nuri were still there, packing their bags very slowly. Marco mused about staying until they had left in different directions, too, but, there was the conference for the half-yearly reports and he had to hurry to reach the teacher's room in time the conference would start.

He left the room with one concerned look back, hoping that he wasn't right with his suspicion. Erik smiled briefly at him and Marco smiled back, not sure if he probably had imagined the attraction between the two boys because of his own feelings for Mario.

He sighed and headed out of the door, wishing for the evening to come soon, when he could talk to Mario again and listen to his wonderful voice telling him how much he loved him.

 

\---------------------------------------------------------

 

Erik looked up from his bag when a shadow fell over his desktop. Nuri stood very close to him and his heart started to beat faster as it always did when Nuri was looking at him. Nuri smiled as he noticed the red color shooting in Erik's soft rounded cheeks the second he returned Nuri's intensive stare.

“The color truly suits you,” he purred and Erik's face felt as if it was burning now. Nuri's smile deepened and he pursed his lips.

“I know who you are, Erik,” he stated and Erik tensed, the color leaving his face as fast as it had crawled into it. Of course, Nuri was only interested in his famous brother, he should have known it. He swallowed and turned away from the young man, disappointed and with a big lump in his throat.

“You are the handsome and nice boy next door every mother would want for their daughters. You are intelligent - even though you try to hide that, not caring about school at the moment, and you are really a beautiful sight. You are kind and sweet and you really should stay away from me, because I am danger and trouble and not worthy that you even look at me,” Nuri continued and his voice was serious and hoarse now.

Erik slowly turned back to look at Nuri again. He was still tense, but curious now and had relaxed a little bit by Nuri's words. But, he had to know it, nonetheless and it was better to find it out right now.

“Mario Götze is my stepbrother!” he snapped accusingly, watching the other one's reaction closely. Nuri only shrugged his shoulders. “Yes, I know. But, it's not your brother I want to invite for a cola, Erik. It's you. I only wanted to let you know that you'd better stay away from me at first.”

Erik's face lit up with a happy smile. “I don't care about you being 'danger' and 'trouble'. Do you really want to invite me for a cola? Now?” he made sure, pinching furtively himself, because he wasn't sure if he was awake or maybe only dreaming.

Nuri nodded his head and he looked utterly relieved by Erik's words and his smile became almost shyly. “Yes, now,” he replied and Erik grabbed his bag and followed Nuri out of the class, grinning like a fool – a very happy fool.


	11. Cola, Pizza, Pasta And Worries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erik and Nuri will enjoy a cola together and size each other up and Marco and Mario have another talk on the phone before going to bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nuri actually forced me to write this chapter today. I had a very bad day and this chapter cheered me up. Hopefully you will enjoy it, too, my wonderful audience. You are amazing and wonderful and I want to thank you for your support and feedback again. Please, continue with that, leave kudos and comments if you like the new chapter, as well. Thank you!! :-)

Erik followed Nuri to a restaurant at the other side of the street near their school. Erik had never been there, it was rather expensive and well-situated and Erik hesitated to go inside. Nuri noticed his reluctance and turned around, looking questioningly at him.

“Did you change your mind?” he asked, his voice impassive again. Erik shook his head. “No, it's only – I've never been here before and it's not the place where pupils normally spend their time after school...” he drawled and Nuri smirked.

“That's the reason why I chose this restaurant. I want to be alone with you. Or would you rather sit in a fast foot restaurant surrounded by a crowd of nosy and cheeky pupils and students?” His voice had changed again as he had realized the reason why Erik had been reluctantly to enter that place and that Erik hadn't changed his mind about their 'date'.

“No... But, I have not enough money with me and I don't think that they will let us only drink a cola there.” Erik bit his lip and his face was burning again. Nuri smiled and reached out to stroke his cheek. It was only a short and brief touch, but Erik felt the caress in every cell of his body.

“Don't worry about the money. I told you that I want to invite you, remember? I'm rather old-school-like. I would never expect you to pay the bill.” He opened the door and Erik entered the restaurant behind Nuri who seemed to be perfectly fine and relaxed. Erik knew that Mario would have behaved the same way and he wondered about Nuri's behavior, wanting nothing more than to get to know this fascinating young man better.

He wore a black biker jacket made of heavy but also soft leather and washed out blue jeans, but, he also showed a natural authority Erik had never seen by any other eighteen year old boy and the waiter approaching them seemed to sense it too, because he asked very politely for their wishes. After a short talk, the waiter guided Nuri and Erik to a table for two by the window and Nuri nodded contentedly, waiting for Erik to shrug out of his winter jacket and sit down. The waiter took their jackets to hang them on the coat rack and Nuri sat down opposite Erik.

Erik smiled uncertainly, hanging his school bag over the back rest of his comfortable chair and Nuri did the same, leaning back and watching Erik thoughtfully.

“Tell me about you, Erik,” he said, tilting his head to the side and Erik swallowed and bit his lip again. Nuri's eyes traveled down to his mouth, looking at his now red bottom lip with a strange expression in his eyes.

“What do you want to know?” Erik finally croaked out and Nuri's gaze became almost hungry and even more intense.

“Everything, Erik. I want to know everything about you,” he purred and Erik blinked, surprised and speechless.

“Uhm, as I told you, I'm Mario Götze's brother and...” he started, but Nuri's frown silenced him again.

“No, Erik Durm. You're _not_ Mario Götze's brother. Not for me. For me, you are Erik Durm and I want to know everything about _you_ , not your brother. He's a talented footballer and you seem to like him, but, I'm not interested in him, at all. I want to know all about _you_. What you like and what you don't like. I want to know what you're dreaming of and I want to know what makes you happy and what not. The only things I know about you are your name and that you are in the same class as me. But, I want to know much more about you. At least everything you want to share with me.” he said, sincerely and honestly.

Erik stared at him, almost shocked and speechless, because apart from Matze and Mr. Reus, no one else had shown true interest in him instead of his famous elder stepbrother.

He opened his mouth, but just when he wanted to answer, the waiter showed up again, holding the menus in his hand. The young man handed one to Nuri and Erik could see that the blonde was as fascinated by Nuri as he was himself. He felt a sudden sharp sting in his stomach and realized that he was jealous of the good-looking guy who beamed at Nuri. Nuri thanked for the menu, but, his smile stayed politely and reserved and Erik relaxed a little bit. He took the other menu the waiter handed to him without really looking at him and another sharp sting caused him pain.

It was always like that. No one seemed to really see him, no one but Mario, Matze, Mr. Reus and – Nuri. Nuri's smile comforted him a little bit and he opened the menu, glad for the opportunity to pull himself together again.

“Choose what you like, Erik. The price doesn't matter,” Nuri's voice broke in on his musings and Erik looked at him. “You sure?” he asked and Nuri nodded his head. “Yes, I'm sure. And please, feel free to ask me if you need some advice. I've been here before - with my family,” he added with an amused grin as he noticed the expression in Erik's eyes.

Erik blushed for the probably tenth time and focused on his menu again. The restaurant offered a lot of meals and he had a hard time with the choice, torn between pizza and pasta. He finally chose a pizza and the second they closed their menus, the waiter appeared again. Erik got the impression that he had been watching them, there were only few guests in the restaurant on that cold Monday midday and the young man had been at their table very fast after they had made their choice.

Erik ordered pizza with mushrooms and salami and Nuri ordered pasta with prawns. Both of them chose cola for their drinks and the waiter took the menus and turned around with an annoyed sidelong glance at Erik after he had beamed at Nuri one more time.

“He doesn't like me,” Erik stated after the young man had left the table.

Nuri pursed his lips. “Do you want to be liked by him?” he asked gently and Erik lowered his gaze and shook his head.

“No,” he replied, painting abstract pictures on the white tablecloth with his finger.

“That's good, because I surely would be pretty jealous if you did,” Nuri remarked dryly and Erik flinched astonished and cautiously raised his head.

“You're joking,” he accused the black-haired teenager. Nuri didn't smile, just watched him intently with those hungry eyes. “I'm not,” he said and Erik nervously licked over his lower lip with his tongue and the dark-brown eyes dilated by that sight.

“Apart from that, he has a thing for you. If looks could kill, I would be dead right now,” Erik mumbled and Nuri shrugged his shoulders. “He's not my type, Erik,” he said and Erik licked over his lip again.

“And who is your type?” he demanded, although he could see the answer in the dark eyes watching him.

“You are my type, Erik and you know that. Now, tell me about you!” Nuri leaned back again, laying his hands on the table in a relaxed gesture and Erik took a deep breath and began to speak.

 

\--------------------------------------------------

 

When the waiter finally brought the pizza and the pasta, Erik had told Nuri about his hobbies, his problems and his secret dreams, something he had never done before with someone he had met only a couple of days ago.

The only one who knew that much about him was Matze, but, Nuri had a way to look at him and to listen to him as if he were the most wonderful being in the world and his attention and his almost tender gaze had pulled the words from him that easily that he hadn't noticed it until he had spoken them out loud. He also had told Nuri about his wish to become a photographer. No one knew about this wish, not even Matze. Erik had never told anyone about his dream and he had feared that Nuri would laugh at him. But, Nuri hadn't laughed. He had smiled at him and said: “That's a good wish, Erik. You are very attentive to little things, I noticed that in school. I'm sure that you will be a damn good photographer if you really want that.” and Erik had beamed at him by these gentle words like the waiter had beamed at Nuri. But, this time, Nuri returned the happy smile tenderly and encouragingly.

Now, they sat there, waiting for the blonde to serve them and leave again. The pizza smelled delicious and Erik's stomach growled loudly with impatience because his confession had made him pretty hungry. Nuri snickered, but, it was a gentle snicker, friendly and kind and Erik joined it, picking up his fork. “Enjoy your meal,” Nuri said and he nodded his head. “You too.” he answered, concentrating on his pizza and sighing happily after the first bite.

For a while, they were busied with their food, two hungry teenage boys enjoying their meal after a long school day. From time to time they smiled at each other and when Erik offered Nuri a slice of his delicious pizza, Nuri rewarded him with a crispy prawn. The waiter came three times, asking if everything was okay, shooting adoring glances at Nuri who simply ignored them, his eyes never leaving Erik's face. They emptied their plates and glasses and Erik felt as happy and content as he had not felt for a rather long time in his life.

“I want to know more about you, too, Nuri,” Erik finally demanded and Nuri smiled at him. “You will, I promise you, but not today. I want to have a reason why we have to do this again,” he answered and Erik of course, blushed again. “You don't need a reason to see me again,” he mumbled sheepishly and Nuri's heated glance made the butterflies in his stomach flapping around excitedly. “Not?” Nuri asked hoarsely and Erik shook his head. “No. All you have to do is ask me,” he admitted and the dark-haired young man caressed him with his eyes. “That's good to know.”

They looked each other deep in the eyes, but just when Erik thought that Nuri would invite him again, his phone began to ring and he remembered that he hadn't told Mario that he wouldn't come home directly after school. He picked up the call and heard his brother's voice, worried and relieved at the same time.

“I'm sorry, Mario. One of my classmates invited me for a cola and I forgot the time. I will catch the next bus and come home. I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to worry you.” He listened to Mario and then said goodbye before he hung up again.

Nuri considered him. “Your brother really cares about you,” he said musing and Erik nodded his head. “Yes, he does. Mario is a wonderful brother and not like the press describes him, at all. I'm sorry, Nuri, I have to go.”

The other one waved at the waiter and took out his wallet. “I will accompany you to the bus,” he stated and the butterflies in Erik's stomach flapped with their wings again. “That would be great,” he said happily, watching Nuri paying the bill.

When they left the restaurant, Erik walking before the black-haired teenager, Nuri's hand laid on his back, only slightly, but the touch warmed Erik's entire body and he let the other boy guide him to the bus stop with a happy smile on his face.

 

\---------------------------------------------------

 

Marco snuggled close to the thick, comfortable cushion on the couch, a huge smile on his face. He dialed Mario's number and his heart began to beat faster while he waited for his wonderful boyfriend to pick up the phone. When Mario did, his warm voice sent shivers of longing and desire over his back.

“Hey, Romeo!” Mario greeted him and Marco found himself grinning like a fool. “Hey, Julian!” he answered, but, he noticed the slightly concerned note in Mario's cheerful greeting, instantly. He only knew him for a few days, but, he could sense his moods and his thoughts as if he knew him for years.

Mario didn't try to deceive him, he sighed and said: “Erik came home late today. He hadn't told me that he would stay away for longer and I was worried and called him. He said that he had had a cola with another pupil and lost track of time. When he finally was home again, he said that he had had lunch with one of his classmates – Nuri Sahin. He never mentioned him before and his eyes... I think that he feels more for this Nuri than he wants to admit. Do you know this guy?”

Marco bit his lip. His suspicion about Erik's and Nuri's feelings had been right and Mario had all reasons to be worried, but he couldn't tell him that right now. “He's a new pupil, he joined the class last week. He came from Dortmund. That's all I can tell you,” he answered, trying not to show his own worries and that he knew more about Nuri Sahin. He realized that he had failed the very next second, because there was a long heavy silence, before Mario spoke up again, his voice was hurt and obviously annoyed.

“You know more about this Nuri, I can hear that. Why don't you tell me more about him?” he accused Marco and Marco felt a lump in his throat. They were together for only two days, but as it seemed, they would have their first quarrel tonight.

“I'm sorry, Mario, but, I can't tell you more about Nuri. I'm his teacher and I have to keep those things confidential. He's not a criminal, this much I can tell you, but, I simply can't tell you more, I'm sorry,” he said, his voice showing his helplessness very clearly.

“I see,” Mario only said hoarsely and Marco feared that he would hang up. “Mario, please, try to understand me, please. I would never betray the trust my pupils, their parents and my director put in me. I would never expect you to tell me things about your club you're not allowed to tell.”

There was another long silence, but then, Mario sighed. “You're right, Marco, I'm sorry. It's just – I feel the pressure of my responsibility for him while our parents are in Mexico and I'm afraid that Erik will get hurt and...”

Marco smiled tenderly and his smile was easily to detect in his soft voice. “I know Mario. You're doing great with your brother, believe me. I'm sure that he will tell you about his feelings when he's ready, just give him some time. Plus, I promise you that I will keep an eye on them and tell you if there is something you have to know. Deal?”

Mario sighed, but, his voice became soft and tender, as well. “Deal. Tell me about your day, my Romeo. Did you miss me?”

Marco heaved a relieved sigh. “And how! I can't tell you how much I missed you!” He began to tell Mario about his day and listened to what Mario told him about his own and when they hung up after talking more than an hour, he felt that they had come even closer to each other after their first almost-fight.

He rushed through his bedtime routine and crawled into his bed, tired and still a little bit worried, but also happy and certain that they would be able to sail together through every storm that might come up their way. He closed his eyes and was asleep within the next three minutes, dreaming about his beloved Julian, the astonishing young man who had captured his heart right at first sight.


	12. Morning Moods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco gets a very early morning call and Erik learns something new about Nuri.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The bad days unfortunately aren't over and I needed something to cheer me up again. This chapter is both, sexy because of the first part and important for the plot because of the second part. I hope you will enjoy both parts!
> 
> I need to thank you again my incredible, wonderful and awesome audience, more than 4000 hits with 11 chapters and so many kudos and lovely comments. Thank you so much for all of this! I feel honored to write this story for you and I hope you will stay with me and my four boys to the end and enjoy their adventures, hopes, fears and struggles. And of course, their love and happiness.
> 
> Please, keep up your wonderful support and let me know if you liked the new chapter, too!

Marco just had stepped out of the shower and dried himself when his phone started to ring. Marco had always been an early riser and he loved to have a long and hearty breakfast before he had to face the day and teach some knowledge and reason into his pupil's sometimes very stubborn heads and this morning had been no exception from the rule.

He headed to his bedroom where his phone lay on the bedside table, rubbing his hair with a towel, another towel wrapped around his waist.

When he picked up the phone and noticed the one who wanted to talk to him, a huge smile made his handsome features even more beautiful and his blue eyes lit up with love and happiness.

“Good morning my sweet Julian!” he purred into the speaker, letting the towel he had dried his hair with fall down to the floor and sitting on the edge of his bed.

“Uh, are you always in such a good mood in the morning?” Mario yawned at the other side of the line, before he added: “I wish you a good morning, too, my Romeo.”

“Normally yes. But, I have to admit that your call boosted my mood even more,” Marco admitted happily. He leaned back against the head of the bed and closed his eyes, focusing only on the wonderful voice close to his ear.

“You sound so – awake!” Mario complained pouting and Marco chuckled quietly. “I am awake,” he pointed out. “I just came from the shower when you called me.”

“Uh, did you dress before you picked up the phone?” Mario asked, sounding interested instead of annoyed now, his voice an irresistible mixture of sleepiness, curiosity and seduction.

Marco's already half-hard cock jerked to full attention, standing on guard duty within the blink of an eye. “No,” he drawled, his voice husky and slightly trembling. “There's only a towel around my waist.” To be honest, the towel wasn't properly in place any longer and his proud weapon peeked out of the slit where the two sides were crossing, cheekily, reminding its owner forcefully that it longed to be touched.

“So I could touch you and feel your naked skin if I were there with you?” Mario inquired with a suppressed moan. “I could stroke you and caress you where no one else is allowed to touch you?”

Marco's hand slipped down to his manhood almost against his will, his fingers enclosing the engorged head slippery with the wetness that had dropped out of the sensitive slit by Mario's seductive words. “Yes!” he hissed, shivering under the first contact of his cooler hand with his heated rock-hard flesh.

“If I were there with you, I would make myself comfortable between your spread legs now and explore you with my mouth, my beautiful Romeo,” Mario purred and Marco had the image his incredible boyfriend aroused in his head clear before his mind's eye. His hand began to move up and down on his impressive length, slowly and lazily, while he fantasized that it was Mario's mouth doing it. He could hear Mario's raged breathing and a silent rustling that told him, that Mario probably was doing the same what he did right now.

“What would you do with your mouth?” he demanded breathlessly, removing the towel from his groin to get better access to the proof of his arousal. He moaned as he wrapped his hand around his aching dick again, stilling his movements for a moment to calm down. It hadn't happened much, but he was very close to coming and he wanted to last longer and enjoy their special phone call as much as he could.

“I would lick your spear with my tongue and kiss it while I would pleasure myself with my hand,” Mario gasped out and now, Marco knew for sure that Mario did what he was doing, as well. “I would take you deep in my mouth and swallow you until you would scream and shout my name,” the younger one continued, a loud moan fleeing from his lips at the end of the sentence.

Marco began to stroke his hardness again and his cock twitched and throbbed with every stroke. He clamped his phone between his shoulder and his ear and moved his other hand down on his body, spreading his legs until he could caress his balls with it. For one moment, he mused about using something else than his hand, shooting a quick glance to his bedside table before he closed them again. He was too close to his climax to be able to stop himself for even a short moment.

“You could turn around so I could pleasure you the way you pleasure me,” he suggested, his voice a hoarse purr like Mario's. “I want to feel your cock deep in my mouth, too. I want to feel the vibrations of your ardent moans around my dick and I want to get you off with my mouth until you shoot your load deep down my throat just when I do the same.”

Mario hissed by Marco's words and the rustling sounds became louder and faster. “Do you know what you do to me, my Romeo?” he croaked out and Marco chuckled breathlessly, his climax building in his groin unstoppable and with force. “Getting you off on the phone like you do me?” he asked, massaging his perineum while his strokes were frantic and firm now. He wanted, no, he needed to come so badly, it was driving him mad. His dick was leaking with pre-come and so wet that he had to add more pressure to his strokes to feel them strong enough and he opened his eyes to look down at his groin when his hard shaft stiffened even more, ready to release itself the very next second. “I'm so close, my Julian, I'm going to shoot now!” he confessed, panting and gasping. “Tell me that you will come with me, please!”

Mario's answer was a strangled cry and his harsh breathing told Marco all he needed to know. He let go of the last shreds of his self-control and followed his sweet boyfriend over the edge, watching his twitching cock spilling long stripes of creamy white all over his hand and his abdomen. He shuddered in time to the jets and his moans were an echo of Mario's as both of them savored their pleasure to the fullest and when they were done, completely spent and sated, they did nothing than just listen to their heavy breathing slowly calming down again.

Marco sighed wistfully because Mario wasn't there, and contentedly because of the warm afterglow of their passionate morning call still rolling through his body and he bent forward to take the towel and wipe himself clean. “I guess I need to shower again – and a new towel,” he finally stated, considering the mess he had made.

Mario snickered very smug and content with himself. “You will still have enough time for your morning coffee,” he comforted the blonde. Marco glanced at the alarm clock on his bedside table. “Only if I hang up now,” he regretted and Mario snickered again. “Okay, I will let you get ready for school than. My mission was successful and I don't want to be responsible for you falling asleep during your classes because I kept you from drinking your morning coffee. But, Marco, please, you will take good care of Erik, won't you?” he asked, becoming the worried elder brother instead of the horny boyfriend.

Marco smiled tenderly. “Of course, I will, Mario, I promise you. If there is anything you need to know, then I will tell you. You have my word on that. I love you!” he assured him and he could hear the smile in the brunette's voice as Mario answered: “Love you, too. Now, get ready!” he hung up and Marco did the same, jumping from the bed and heading to the bathroom again. He would have to hurry now, but, it totally had been worth it.

 

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Erik entered his school together with his friend Matze, anxious and nervous about Nuri's reaction when they would see each other for the first time after their lunch-date again.

Matze shot him an amused look. “You're really crazy for him, right?” he asked quietly, making sure with a quick glance back that nobody else would be able to hear his words. Erik blushed, although Nuri was nowhere in sight.

“Don't talk about that in school! I want to keep it a secret!” he hissed and Matze's grin deepened. “Then, you should stop blushing whenever he is around and making goo goo eyes at him,” he stated dryly and the redness of Erik's cheeks became darker. “Matze!” he pleaded and Matthias finally took pity on him. He started to talk about maths and the homework they had had to do for today and Erik eagerly picked up the topic, although maths of course, wasn't his favorite class. But, Mr. Hummels was a damn good teacher, almost as good as Mr. Reus and maths would be the first class they had today, so it probably would be a good idea to get himself ready for it.

When they appeared in the classroom, Nuri was already there and Erik wondered briefly why the black-haired teenager always came that early. He sat at his desk, leaned back in his seat comfortably with his legs spread out under the table, reading something on his small tablet. Erik had noticed that Nuri mostly used his tablet for reading something, but that he used his smartphone only rare times. Nuri wasn't one of the guys who always ran through the hallways with their eyes focused on their mobile phones and with their thumbs typing hundreds of messages and when he crossed Nuri's chair, catching a quick look at what Nuri was reading, he realized that the text was written in English, astonished and stunned.

Nuri hadn't participated much to the lessons since he had joined Erik's class, but, he listened to the teachers' words and never disturbed the classes like other pupils did sometimes. Nuri raised his head as he felt Erik's presence in the room and looked up at him, intently and with a hidden smile tugging at one corner of his mouth. It was a true smile that reached the chocolate-brown eyes and Erik had a hard time to keep himself from grinning stupidly like a fool, forcing himself to smile back as briefly as Nuri had smiled.

He sat down at his own desk angling for his books in his bag. Matze slumped down on his chair beside him, doing the same with an annoyed groan. “Did I tell you that I hate Tuesdays? Two hours of maths, German, politics, history and English, that's simply horrible!” he complained and Erik snorted, unimpressed. “Yes, you told me more than once, Matze,” he replied, shooting another wistful glance in Nuri's direction. Nuri had lowered his head on his tablet again and Erik could see that he was absorbed in what he was reading. Erik frowned, astonished again, because Nuri seemed to be able to read English fluently, he neither had a dictionary lying next to him, nor did he look as if he had problems with understanding what he was reading and Erik didn't know anyone except for his teacher Mr. Reus who was able to read and speak English as if it was their mother tongue and certainly none of his classmates.

When the other teenager felt Erik's gaze upon him again, he tilted his head to the side and gazed at him, questioningly. “Is there anything I can do for you, Erik?” he asked politely, due to their classmates watching them curiously.

“Uhm, no, thanks,” Erik stuttered shyly, lowering his gaze again. “I only noticed that you read English...”

Matze beside him jerked his head up. “Wow, you're good with English, then, if you're able to read it without looking in a dictionary for every second word, I mean?” he burst out, ignoring Erik's elbow punching him in his side.

“I think so, Matthias,” Nuri answered, nodding his head, his amusement clear to hear in his dark voice.

“Oh, please, would you take pity on me then, and help this guy here with English? I promised him to learn with him, but, he's a hopeless case, I guess. He's driving me mad every time I try!”

Erik stared at Matthias, upset and with his mouth hanging open, because that had been a blatant lie. Matthias had never even thought of learning English with him. He opened his mouth to protest against it, but Nuri's words silenced him, instantly.

“Of course, Matthias. It would be my pleasure to help Erik with English. What do you think, Erik? Shall we give it a try?”


	13. About Pupils And Teachers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Erik agree to learn English with Nuri? And will Marco be able to keep his relationship with Mario a secret?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This could perhaps be considered as a 'filler-chapter', but, I guess that it is important and needed to be written. Please, share your opinion with me and tell me what you think of it.
> 
> You are the most wonderful and amazing audience one could have and I can't thank you enough for your incredible feedback, encouragement and support! You are great!!!

Erik stared at Nuri, unable to say something. He didn't notice the astonished glances of his classmates and their silent and excited whisper, all he could see were the wonderful chocolate-brown eyes watching him, waiting for his answer. Nuri's look was intense and almost hypnotically and all Erik could do was stammering: “Uhm why not. It surely would be good if I could learn with someone who is that good with English.”

Nuri smiled, contentedly, but, Erik could also see that he relaxed a little bit, just as if he had been anxious about his answer. The whispering became louder and suddenly, Erik felt the eyes of everyone in the classroom upon him. He shot an angry and helpless look at his friend, but, Matze only grinned, smug and amused, obviously rather contend with himself. Lisa and Marie, two of his classmates stared at him with narrowed eyes and he stared back at them, not willing to let the two girls intimidate him. They had tried to hit on him just because they had wanted to meet his famous brother in person and not because they truly liked him and he still wasn't over the way they had wanted to use him.

Marie pushed her long blonde hair over her shoulder and turned her head to look at Nuri wistfully with goo goo eyes from underneath her with thick mascara blackened eyelashes.

“Oh, Nuri,” she purred. “Would you please do the same for me? I want to be the Juliet when Mr. Reus let us play the theater performance before the Easter holidays. I'm sure that I will get the role if you helped me with English.”

Nuri who had still looked at Erik, very slowly turned his head in her direction. Erik held his breath and bit his lips, feeling nervously and anxiously all of a sudden. He had thought that Nuri was truly interested in him, but now, he wasn't sure about it any longer. He watched the black-haired teenager's reaction closely, unconsciously digging his nails into his palms. Nuri's face was completely impassive as he gazed at the girl and said: “I'm sorry, Marie, but, this isn't possible. I will be too busy for that.”

He shot a quick glance at Matze who was still grinning and added in an only slightly mocking voice: “But, I'm sure that Matthias would be very pleased to help you with English, now that he doesn't need to 'waste' his time with the 'hopeless case' any longer...”

Nuri smiled regretfully and very politely at Marie, and the strangled sound next to Erik's ear made him flinch. Matze gulped for air, his eyes threatening to fall out of his head and Marie pulled a face, pouting and disappointed. “Uh no, thank you. I will learn with Lisa, then!” she snapped and her cheeks became even more red than they already were because of her pink rouge.

“As you wish,” Nuri said in agreement, shrugging his shoulders. He lowered his head on his small tablet again, but his eyes grazed Erik's for one tiny moment again and their expression was soft and almost tenderly.

Erik suppressed his happy sigh and this time it was Matze's elbow that punched him in his side, but, he didn't care. All he cared about was that he would see Nuri on a regular basis, hopefully alone and undisturbed.

Mr. Hummels entered the class, his always messy hair even more messy than usual due to the wind and the snow outside, but, in his normal good mood, smiling widely at his pupils as he wished them a good morning.

Erik didn't like maths, but, he liked Mr. Hummels and he had promised his brother that he would do all he could to get good grades this year and he was determined to keep his promise. He opened his book and concentrated on what Mr. Hummels standing at the board tried to 'hammer' in his pupils' heads, but, he couldn't resist to look at Nuri now and then and every time he did so, their eyes met and a slight smile tugged at the corner of the black-haired teenager who had stolen Erik's heart so easily and unquestioningly.

 

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Marco entered the teacher's room, eager to check his smartphone, greeting the four elder female colleagues sitting together at the large table briefly.

The last hour was over and he had noticed the vibrations of his phone during the lessons with his pupils. After that, he had had a hard time focusing on the subject matter and it hadn't helped his concentration that said subject matter had been 'Romeo and Juliet'.  
Not, with the memory of the special morning call from his 'Julian' and the turnout of that call.

To add to his confusion, there had been a big quarrel about the roles of Romeo and Juliet among the teenagers. Marco had decided to make a theater performance out of the subject matter and show it to the parents and relatives of his pupils before the start of the Easter vacations and his class had been excited and eager to begin with the rehearsals.

But then, things had gone bad. Marco had let every pupil read one of the dialogues to show their ability to read and speak English and it had been clear right from the start who actually should be the Romeo, at least judging by the female pupils' reactions. Marco of course, had had to agree with them, because Nuri had read the dialogue fluently and without one single mistake.  
The young teacher had known that Nuri spoke English like a native speaker, but, it had impressed him, nonetheless. He had let the other boys read the dialogue, too, but Nuri had been the best. The choice between the girls would be much harder and he hadn't decided yet.

Marco had been quite aware of the glances Nuri and Erik had gifted each other with during the class and Marco was pretty sure that Nuri would like to have Erik as his 'Juliet'. Plus, Erik had looked almost defeated as Marie had read the dialogue of the Juliet as fluently as she had never done before. Marie on the other hand obviously had been very satisfied with her own performance and looked triumphantly at Nuri who had simply ignored her while the other girls had whined and complained, insisting of getting a second chance.

Marco inwardly shook his head while he crossed the room to be alone and undisturbed when reading his messages, feeling very old all of a sudden.  
If it had not been Erik, he probably had been amused about the whole drama, but, as things stood, he didn't feel any amusement about it. Erik was confused and had enough problems of his own and falling in love with Nuri would make everything much more complicated than it already was.

If Marco was right with his suspicion, then it was too late because Erik actually had fallen in love with the young man and Nuri seemed to return the brunette's feelings.

He sighed, knowing that Mario had all reason to be worried about his little stepbrother. Not, because Nuri was a bad guy, but because of his background. He sighed again and took his smartphone out of his pocket, pondering for a brief moment on the question if he actually should give Mario a hint or not. He scrolled through the messages he had gotten, two from his friend Marcel, one from the bookshop where he bought his books and one from Mario. The butterflies in his stomach began to dance and flap with their wings and he quickly looked around if someone was watching him.

It was only a short message, but, it made Marco smile. 

_'The best morning-start ever! Want to see you tonight, please call me, M.'_

“Where is my book?” The question right next to his ear made Marco jerk and turn around, startled and with a loud “Oops!?” fleeing from his lips. He stared at Mats who stood only one step behind him, grinning at him.

“Damn it, Mats! You nearly gave me a heart attack!” Marco gasped out, hiding his phone behind his back to keep Mats from spying.

Mats crossed his arms before his chest and pursed his lips. He considered the blonde with narrowed eyes and demanded: “I want to know all about him. Plus, I want to have the book! You promised to bring it with you today, but, as it seems, you were too – hm distracted - to actually think of your promise.”

Marco pushed his phone into his pocket and fished for the book Mats wanted to have. “I kept my promise,” he countered, reproachfully, handing the book to the teacher with the messy black curls. “I would never forget the promises I made!” he added in the attempt to arouse a bad conscience in his friend and colleague.

Mats only grinned, leaning comfortably against the wall next to the large window. “Don't change the topic, Marco. I want to know all about this wonder-guy who makes your eyes shine, your cheeks turn pink and your mouth grin like a stupid fool head over heels in love just because of a short two-sentence-message!”

Marco stared at him with his mouth hanging open before he looked over his shoulder to make sure that the four elder women didn't hear them. “You read it! I can't believe that!” he hissed in a low, but nonetheless angry voice. “I can't believe that you read my private messages!”

Mats frowned again, taken aback by the force of Marco's anger. “I didn't read your message, Marco,” he assured him, trying to calm his friend down. “I only noticed that it was pretty short and that you blushed and looked as if you had won the lottery. Judging by your behavior, one could think that your new boyfriend is a person of public interest.”

Marco paled, lowering his gaze and Mats whistled silently through his teeth. “Uh, wow, it is a person of public interest,” he murmured, stunned and disbelievingly, watching Marco closely. Marco searched for words and opened his mouth, but, nothing came out. He just stared at the damaged PVC floor wishing for a hole in the ground to swallow him. Mats stayed silent and Marco finally found the courage to look up at his colleague and friend again. When he raised his head, Mats smiled at him, sympathetically and a little bit worried, all teasing gone.

“I think I know who it is and I have to tell you that I'm not sure if this is wise, Marco,” he said friendly and without any judgment in his voice.

Marco bit his lip. “I know, Mats. It's just, I can't...” He shrugged his shoulders in a helpless gesture.

Mats' smile deepened and he patted the blonde's shoulder. “I know, Marco. I will be there for you, but, please, be careful, will you?” He took the book and smiled encouragingly at Marco one last time before he left the teacher's room.

Marco watched him leave and sighed for the third time within few minutes. “Yes, I will try to be careful,” he murmured to himself, but, he knew that it was already too late for that. His wonderful 'Julian' had stolen his heart and there was no chance that Marco would ever get it back again.

 

\----------------------------------------------------

 

Erik slowly packed his books into his bag, ignoring Matze's attempts to talk to him. He was still angry with him because of his trick and Matthias' tries to soothe him hadn't calmed him down yet. To add to his anger, Marie had read her dialogue pretty well and she told everyone no matter if they might want to know it or not that she would be Nuri's Juliet. Erik was so jealous that it hurt, but, he gritted his teeth and forced the impassive mask on his face he had mastered so perfectly.

A touch on his shoulder made him flinch and he looked up, startled. Nuri stood behind him, looking intently at him and Erik drowned in the endless depths of the chocolate-brown eyes again.

“Hey. What about our English lesson, Erik? Do you want to start this afternoon?” Nuri asked and there was an undertone of uncertainty in his voice that made Erik's heart miss a beat. Nuri was uncertain? He blinked and looked at him from underneath his eyelashes. “You really meant what you said?” he inquired incredulously.

Nuri frowned and the expression in his eyes became sad. “Of course. You didn't, Erik?” He sounded hurt and disappointed and Erik felt a happy smile spread across his features. “Uhm, yes, of course, I do want to learn English with you. We – we could learn at my place. I'm sure that Mario won't mind.”

Nuri beamed at him and Erik was glad that Marie had already left the classroom. Only Matze was left with them, but, he winked at Erik and mumbled something from catching the bus before he hurried out of the room, leaving Erik and Nuri alone with each other.

“I can't believe that you truly want to learn English with me,” Erik said, still stunned and amazed and Nuri reached out and stroked his face. “I'm not interested in Marie, Erik, nor in anybody else. Only in you,” he answered gently and caressed his bottom lip with his thumb. Erik shivered and Nuri's gaze darkened with longing. “I want to learn English with you, Erik, really, and I want to start right now.”

Erik licked with his tongue over his lip Nuri had caressed only seconds before. “We should go then,” he stated, hoarsely and Nuri nodded his head. “Yes, let's go.”

Erik took his bag and his jacket and let himself be guided out of the room with butterflies in his belly and his eyes shining bright with joy and happiness.

In the end, he would have to thank Matze for his little trick, that was a given, but only after he had kept him in suspense for a while.


	14. The First Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erik and Nuri want to learn English at Erik's place. What will happen there? And what will Mario do when he learns that his little brother is in love with his classmate?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The new week unfortunately started as bad as the last week had ended and I needed to cheer me up again. So, I wrote a new chapter about my four beloved boys.
> 
> I can't thank you enough for your wonderful support and encouragement again, my wonderful audience, I can't tell you, how much it means to me! Please, let me know, if you like the new chapter, too and give me feedback, share your thoughts with me and leave comments or kudos if you enjoyed it!

Erik stepped out of the bus and slowly made his way to the house where he lived, Nuri walking close beside him. He felt nervous and unsure as he noticed the curious glances of his classmate gazing around, even though there was nothing he should have been nervous about, at all. They crossed several nice bungalows similar to the one his family called their own and when they finally reached the small gate leading to the front garden, Nuri smiled at him and said: “You live in a nice home, Erik.”

Erik smiled back, relieved that Nuri seemed to like what he saw. The bungalow had been painted again one year ago and the walls were still creamy white and his mother saw to the beautiful front garden and the larger one behind the house whenever she was at home. He turned the key and opened the door, waiting for the black-haired teenager to enter the house before him.

They stood in the bright hall shrugging out of their jackets and Erik took both and hung them in the wardrobe they used as a coat rack, before he carefully pulled at his winter shoes instead of kicking them off like he normally would have done. Nuri grinned at him as if he had read his thoughts and did the same, before he followed Erik through the corridor and the living room to Erik's chamber, looking curiously around again, drinking in the sight of Erik's home.

Erik closed the door and then, he just stood there, not knowing what he should do. He bit his lip and gazed at his classmate while Nuri placed his bag under Erik's desk, apparently feeling relaxed and untroubled. “Hm, do you want to drink something, cola, juice, water, beer...” The last word made Nuri arching a surprised eyebrow and Erik blushed, but Nuri only smiled again and reached out with his hand.

“Come to me, Erik,” he ordered, his voice gently, but firm and when Erik did nothing than just standing in the middle of his room, staring at him, his smile became tender and he waved with his hand as if he wanted to lure a frightened little tomcat. “Come to me, Erik, I won't bite you. You're far to sweet to do you any harm.” He waited patiently for Erik to cross the distance between them with few hesitant steps and when Erik was within reach of his arms, he slowly wrapped them around the brunette teenager's waist, pulling him close to his body.

They looked each other in the eyes, dark-brown gaze tempting like sweet plain chocolate meeting hazel-green stare, and Erik shyly wrapped his arms around Nuri's neck. Nuri tilted his head to the side and his eyes became even darker as they dilated with desire. “I want to kiss you, my sweet Erik,” he demanded hoarsely and Erik swallowed audibly. He wanted to be kissed by Nuri, he wanted it more than he had ever wanted anything else. He wanted to feel Nuri's lips upon his own and he wanted to lose himself in their kiss. He had never really kissed before, because the few chaste kisses he had shared with a girl didn't count, at all. He had never kissed a boy before and he was nervous and anxious again, because he feared that he would do something wrong and act stupidly.

“Tell me that you want to kiss me, as well, Erik,” Nuri whispered, his voice now uncertain with his worries that the other boy might not return his feelings.

Erik drew in a deep breath. “Yes, I want to kiss you, I really do, but, I never truly kissed before and I'm afraid that you will be disappointed...” he confessed, staring embarrassed at the floor to avoid Nuri's questioning gaze.

Nuri loosened his grip around his waist and lifted his hand to stroke Erik's heated cheek with his thumb. “You won't disappoint me, my sweet Erik, I promise you. Let me show you how wonderful a kiss can be.” He tenderly tousled Erik's soft golden-brown hair and pulled him close again. Erik unconsciously closed his eyes, cocking his head to the other side, as Nuri invaded his space, gently pressing his lips upon his trembling mouth for the very first time.

First, the touch was as soft as a feather, but the simple fact of Nuri touching his lips with his own dry and still closed ones sent electric jolts of pleasure through Erik's shivering body. Nuri's tempting scent overwhelmed his senses, an irresistible mixture of sun-kissed skin, fresh air and Nuri's musky aftershave.

Nuri's fingers stroked his hair and the sensitive nape of his neck and his slight stubble scratched tenderly over Erik's own smoother cheek, adding to the wonderful sensation of smooth lips nibbling eagerly at his own. Erik moaned and finally returned the kiss and his shy answer seemed to be all what Nuri had been waiting for. His cheeky tongue darted out of his mouth, licking teasingly over Erik's tingling bottom lip, asking for permission to explore the sweet cavern of this tempting unknown territory the black-haired young man wanted to claim so badly.

Erik opened his mouth, allowing the curious and clever tongue to slip into the soft cave, moaning silently as Nuri took advantage of his submission, instantly, challenging his own tongue to play with the tender conqueror demanding his unquestioning surrender. Erik lost all track of time as he instinctively tightened his embrace, pressing his body close to the other male and battling playfully with Nuri's tongue for dominance.

The kiss aroused feelings in him he hadn't know he was capable to feel them, such a strong desire and ardent longing that he could feel it in every cell of his body. He wanted to come closer to Nuri, as close as two beings only could be and he wanted to touch, feel and explore Nuri's body, claim him as his own just as he wanted to be claimed by the other teenager.  
He was aroused and ached for more, and he could feel the proof of Nuri's own desire and passion pressing against his needy groin with the same longing as he felt.

Nuri seemed to be determined to drive him crazy with need and ardor, because his tongue didn't let go of his own, inviting him to dance the old courting dance with him, stroking and caressing every little spot and every place in his mouth he could reach.

They kissed each other until Erik was sure that he would gladly die with exaltation and happiness the very next second and just when he was ready to black out because of his overwhelming desire and the lack of air in his lungs, Nuri drew back from his now deep red and swollen wet lips, laying his forehead against Erik's, trying to catch his breath.

Erik blinked against the dazed feeling and reluctantly opened his eyes, his breathing ragged and heavily as if he had tired himself out with a run,completely.

“Wow,” he eventually whispered and Nuri raised his head to look at him. “Yes, wow,” he chuckled huskily. “Are you sure that this was your first kiss?” His dark eyes considered him as if Nuri wanted to explore the depths of his soul and Erik blushed under the heated and hungry glance. “Yes, I'm sure.” Erik couldn't help but beaming at the black-haired teenager who had stolen his heart so easily. “And it was perfect. I didn't know that kissing someone – you – would be so – so extraordinary...”

Nuri's eyes were filled with passion and he smiled at him with tender amusement. “Yes, this kiss was truly extraordinary and breathtaking.” He placed a kiss on Erik's nose and Erik sighed and snuggled close to him, wanting nothing more than to kiss Nuri again. Nuri made a silent frustrated sound and gently pushed him away. “Later, my sweet Erik. I promised to learn English with you and that's why I'm here. We will kiss again, but, first, we will learn English together.”

Erik stared disbelievingly at him, pouting and hurt because of the rejection. “You're cruel!” he complained, but, when Nuri stroked his cheek and whispered: “No, Erik, I'm not. You want to become a photographer and you will need English for letting this dream of yours come true,” he couldn't be angry with the dark-haired teenager any longer. He sighed and nodded, bending down to open his school bag. He fished his English book out of it and when he straightened again, Nuri pulled him in for another sweet kiss.

“I'm in love with you, Erik, I'm so in love with you,” he murmured at his lips and Erik happily returned the kiss, whispering in a trembling voice: “I'm in love with you, too, Nuri, so much in love with you, too...”

 

\-----------------------------------------------------

 

Mario opened the front door, glad to be finally at home. He had done a hard training session and every single bone in his body was aching, although his favorite physiotherapist had massaged his sore muscles after the training thoroughly.

All he wanted to do was taking a hot bath and drive to Marco's place to let his wonderful Romeo take care of him and comfort him. They hadn't seen each other since Sunday afternoon and his longing for the blonde teacher had worn him down. He took off his jacket and hung it in the wardrobe, frowning as he noticed a leather jacket hanging there he couldn't quite recognize. He closed the wardrobe and took his training bag, carrying it downstairs to the basement where he lived when he stayed at his parent's place. He filled the washing machine musing about the strange visitor and checked his phone, hoping that Marco had tried to call him.

He hadn't, but a happy smile spread across Mario's handsome features as he saw the message Marco had sent him.

_'Want to come to my place around eight? I'm still in school, but, I will cook for you again, M.'_

He quickly wrote a short message: _'I'll be there, M.☺,'_ pressing the button 'send' before he made his way upstairs again, knocking hesitantly on Erik's door.

A few seconds passed before he heard Erik's voice yelling: “Come in!”, and he frowned, because Erik seemed to be a little bit out of breath. He cautiously opened the door and stepped into the room, steeling himself for whatever he might face in Erik's personal area of retreat.

He surely hadn't expected two boys sitting side by side at Erik's desk, their English books opened in front of them and the unknown black-haired teenager looking at his little stepbrother with a strict face and saying: “Once again, Erik. I know that you can do it better.”

His little brother pulled a face, scowling at his strict teacher, but he obeyed and repeated the sentence he must have said before Mario had come in, his gaze now unmistakable adoring and wistful. The young man nodded contentedly and turned around to Mario. He smiled at him and greeted him politely:

“Hello Mr. Götze. I'm Nuri Sahin, one of Erik's classmates and I'm pleased to meet you.”

Mario stared at the young man, unable to say anything as the realization who Erik's classmate actually was hit him with all its force. Now, he knew why the name had made him feel uncomfortable as Erik had told him about his lunch with the young man the previous day and now he also knew exactly who Nuri Sahin really was and what would happen if Erik fell in love with him.

Judging by the way Erik looked at the other boy, Mario was pretty sure that his concern was more than justified and Mario also knew that all he could do was be there for Erik and lend him his shoulder to cry on when Nuri had broken his heart. He might not want to break Erik's heart, but in the end he would, Mario was quite sure about that.


	15. Passion And Worries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mario and Marco have another date at Marco's home. They missed each other deeply and surely will enjoy themselves before having dinner.  
> But, Mario is still worried about Erik and his feelings for Nuri. Will he talk about his worries with Marco? And how will Marco react?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tatata! I promised to reveal Nuri's secret and yes, I will do it in this chapter, at least partly...  
> Hopefully you will like the background I created for one of my four sweet boys. Please, share your thoughts with me and tell me if you like the idea my mind came up with!  
> I have to thank you again for all the love you gift me with, so many hits, more than 200 kudos and 200 comments. You're absolutely wonderful, amazing and I'm so touched! All of you made my horrible last two weeks better with your support and wonderful feedback, please keep up with it and stay with my four boys till they found their happy end!  
> It's late and there might be mistakes, I will read it again tomorrow and hopefully find the biggest ones.  
> And now, enjoy the new chapter! :-)

Marco opened the door with a happy smile as the bell rang exactly at twenty o'clock. He had set up the table and cooked a wonderful dinner and now, his heart was pounding in his chest because he finally would see his wonderful boyfriend again. It had been only two days since they last had seen each other, but, for Marco it had felt like an eternity.

When Mario appeared on the stairs, a huge smile made the blonde's handsome features even more beautiful and Mario sped up and almost ran the last few steps upwards, throwing himself into Marco's waiting arms, crushing their mouths together. Marco stumbled backwards, his arms full with his eager boyfriend who shoved him into the corridor and closed the door with a determined kick of his left foot.

Marco groaned as Mario claimed his lips in a passionate kiss, his cheeky tongue demanding entrance forcefully while he began to rip the offending garment keeping him from feeling Marco's naked skin from the young teacher's slim body. “Mario, the dinner...” Marco tried to object, but, his voice sounded far too pleased and breathlessly to be convincing and Mario only growled unimpressed, kicking off his boots and shrugging out of his jacket. “Dinner can wait. I can't.” He moved forward in the direction of Marco's bedroom and all Marco could do was obeying and stepping back, their clothes leaving a trail on their way to Marco's large and comfortable bed.

When they finally reached it, all they still wore were their briefs and socks and Mario didn't waste any more time and pulled at the waistband of Marco's underpants. Marco groaned again, his already rock-hard shaft waiting impatiently to be liberated from the tight cotton while he fumbled with Mario's shorts. Mario's kiss was all teeth and tongue as if he wanted to suck the air out of Marco's lungs and both of them shivered with the sensation of their erections rubbing against each other as they pulled their briefs down in perfect sync. Marco let himself fall down on the mattress, pulling Mario with him until the younger one lay on top of him and Mario twisted and squirmed above him to take off their socks. Marco moaned and arched his back, feeling for the lube and the condoms in the meantime while Mario ridded them of their last clothing.

When he had found both, he pressed the items into the brunette's hand who looked at him, surprised. “Uh, I know that you love to bottom, but, I do believe that we shouldn't do this without at least a little preparation,” he stated with uncertainty, but, Marco only grinned at him mischievously.

“You are lucky to have a foresighted boyfriend who already suspected that you might be in the mood for a passionate encounter before having dinner, and who did the preparation for you, so you can go ahead with what we both want right away, my sweet Julian,” he said and Mario's beautiful face lit up with pure bliss.

“I love you, Marco,” he whispered, ripping the package open eagerly and hastily. Marco took the condom out of his trembling fingers. “Let me help you with this,” he whispered at Mario's lips, rolling the rubber over the footballer's impressive length. Mario gasped and squeezed a generous amount of lube onto his fingers, lining himself up, hastily while Marco turned onto his stomach, settling his weight on his forearms and raising his hips in a very inviting way.

Mario inhaled sharply by the tempting sight as he knelt behind him and grabbed his hips, pushing with the engorged head of his dick against Marco's puckered entrance. The younger one teased him with a few strokes, smearing the lube all over his waiting hole and Marco groaned with frustration, trying to push his hips up to feel the love of his life deep inside his needy core. Mario chuckled breathlessly, his hands keeping Marco firmly in place while he pushed in just a little bit before pulling out and stroking the sensitive skin between his butt cheeks and over his perineum again. Marco threw his head back, moaning loudly and Mario took advantage of his new position and bent forward, slipping with his agile tongue into his ear.  
He explored the blonde's ear eagerly and Marco gasped and panted because of the double teasing stimulation. He needed to feel Mario deeper, becoming one with the young man he loved so much, but, Mario kept pushing in only few inches and pulling out again until Marco thought that he would lose his mind with his desire.

“God, Mario, please, take me! Stop teasing me!” he ground out. “I need to feel you!”

Mario chuckled, pleased and aroused, the warm air of his laughter tickling the sensitive wet skin Mario had caressed with his curious tongue and Marco shivered heavily, trying to move his hips again. “You're mine, my wonderful Romeo, only mine!” Mario demanded and Marco groaned with need and longing. “Yes, I'm only yours, my beloved Julian, please, take me now, I need to be yours!”

And Mario did. He thrust into the young teacher with one forceful move, sheathing his steel-hard spear to the hilt into the wonderful tight heat of his boyfriend. Both cried out with the sensation as they finally were as close to each other as two beings only could be.

“God, yes, just like that. As deep as you can! Take me, fill me!” Marco encouraged Mario to move and satisfy his overwhelming lust with him as Mario began to thrust, driving into him again and again in a punishing rhythm and Marco pushed back as fast as he could, spreading his legs wider and raising his hips, exposing his vulnerable backside to his boyfriend, trusting him to never hurt him.

Mario let go of his hip with his left hand, wrapping his arm around his chest to support his weight and demanded in a hoarse voice, raw and shaky with his lust and need:

“Pleasure yourself, I want to see you jerking yourself off to my thrusts!”

Marco moaned, incredibly aroused and he obeyed, lifting his torso up until he could brace his left hand against the head of the bed. His right hand enclosed his aching cock almost by its own will, the pulsing head wet and slick with the pre-come Mario's merciless pounding against his sweet spot milked from him and he began to stroke his painfully hard erection in time to Mario's passionate thrusts.

Mario gasped and panted into his ear and Marco could feel him getting harder deep inside him, sensing that his lover was close to his orgasm. The knowledge of Mario's imminent climax was all Marco needed to reach his own brink of ecstasy. He trembled, poised on the edge of his forceful release for few seconds and when Mario suddenly got rigid behind him, crying out in complete ecstasy and pushing into him with one last hard thrust, he lost himself in his own passion and lust, the strong waves of absolute satisfaction washing over him and taking him away with their force. He felt the twitches of Mario's shooting member as the brunette released himself into the condom only vaguely, while his own throbbing dick pumped its load all over his sweaty fingers and onto the sheets.

It went on like this for almost forever and when it finally was over, they dropped down on the mattress, panting heavily, a sticky and sweaty mess, their limbs entangled and and their heated bodies curled around each other.

“Did I mention how much I love you?” Mario murmured against Marco's smooth flesh and Marco chuckled happily. “I think I heard you saying something like this. But, a reminder wouldn't do any bad...”

Mario joined his laughter, searching for Marco's lips. “I love you, Marco,” he whispered and Marco kissed him back with all the love he felt for the brunette, murmuring: “I love you, too, Mario, more than I can say.”

 

\-------------------------------------------------------

 

Later, they sat at the table, enjoying the delicious dinner Marco had cooked. He had cooked pasta and made a delicious salad, but, he could see that Mario was troubled and worried, musing about something and so, he laid his hand upon the younger ones and asked gently:

“Do you want to tell me what's bothering so, Mario? It has something to do with Erik, right?”

Mario sighed, drawing pictures with his fork into the tomato sauce on his plate. “When I came home from the training, I saw a leather jacket hanging in our wardrobe. I knocked on Erik's door and when I came into his room, he sat there with another guy at his desk, learning English.”

Marco stroked his hand in a comforting gesture, but, he didn't interrupted the other one's speech, waiting patiently for Mario to continue.

“I know now why you couldn't tell me who Nuri Sahin is, Marco. I saw his face and I knew immediately what's so special about him.”

Mario raised his head and looked at Marco almost desperately. “Erik is in love with him, Marco. I could see it. He tried to hide it and they really only sat there, learning English together, but, I could tell it by the way Erik looked at him. And Nuri returns his feelings.”

Marco sighed. “Yes, he does. Nuri truly loves Erik.” he agreed, but, it didn't calm the brunette down or made him be less worried.

“That may be as it is, but, he will break Erik's heart in the end, I know that for sure. This love is meant to end unhappily for both of them.” Mario carefully laid his fork on his plate, his appetite suddenly gone.

“Why are you so sure about it, Mario?” Marco asked curiously, raising an eyebrow. Mario pulled a face as if he had gotten a bad toothache all of a sudden.

“Because I already met his father, Marco. He will never allow it that Nuri has a boyfriend. A boyfriend who is the little stepbrother of one of the footballers of the club his company deals with,” he snorted and Marco now stared at the brunette surprised and stunned.

“Damn it, Sahin Enterprises has a contract with Bayern München?” he inquired, completely taken aback.

Mario vigorously nodded his head. “Yes, Sahin Enterprises has a contract with Bayern München. I met Nuri's father after our bosses had fixed it, Marco. He made this deal because he is a clever and hard-minded businessman, not, because he loves football that much. He want's to make money with that, nothing more and nothing less. He considers every sportsman as dense, stupid and not being able to count to three and he made that clear the minute he opened his mouth to speak to us. He has a company that evolves and designs computer-chips for the government of almost every important country in the world and works close with the military of these countries and for him, us poor sportsmen have the IQ of an amoeba. He earns so much money with his company that he can fire his cigarettes with fifty-Euro-notes and he is also a very traditional family man.”

He ruffled his hair and rubbed his forehead as if he had a bad headache. “Nuri is his heir, Marco. Savas Sahin won't allow his eldest son and the precious heir of Sahin Enterprises to have a relationship with my little stepbrother, no way. He expects him to marry a nice Turkish girl, have children to produce the next heir and take over responsibility in his company as soon as he has finished his studies, probably in informatics and business economics.”

Marco laid his own fork aside, feeling not hungry any longer. “Did you tell Erik about Nuri? Did you tell Nuri that you know about his background?” he asked silently.

Mario shook his head. “No, I didn't. Nuri seems to be a fine young man and I could see that he truly cares about Erik. The only thing I don't get is why does Nuri go to a public school? Not to mention that I do want to know the reason why he lived in Dortmund for some years while his family was in London? Erik only told my yesterday that Nuri came from Dortmund, but, I know for sure that Savas Sahin lived in London and had his company's headquarter there before he moved to Munich last year.”

Marco bit his lips, unsure if he should tell Mario about what he knew. But then, he decided that Mario had a right to know whom his brother had fallen in love with. Mario was young and responsible for Erik as long as their parents weren't there to support him and Marco was determined to ease his burden at least a little bit and tell him what he knew himself about the remarkable teenager who had joined his class. Mario already had learned about the most important things he had promised to keep confidential because of Sahin Enterprise's contract with Bayern München and so, he opened his mouth and said:

“Fair enough, I will tell you what I know myself about Nuri, Mario. But, please, don't tell it to anyone and most of all, not to Erik. Nuri deserves to get the chance and tell it to Erik himself.”

Mario hesitated for one moment, but then, he nodded his head. “I won't tell him, Marco. But please, I really need to know what's going on.”

Marco took Mario's hand and smiled tenderly at him. “All right. I will tell you why Nuri visits a public school and why he lived in Dortmund for quite some time...”


	16. Who Is Nuri Sahin?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco has promised to tell Mario what he knows about Nuri. What will Mario do when he knows the whole truth?  
> And will he allo Erik to stay alone at home when Mario is in Wolfsburg?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tatata! Here is the second part of Nuri's background, I hope that you will like it! I had fun with creating it and this chapter wrote itself very easily and quickly.  
> Please, my wonderful and awesome audience, give me feedback and tell me what you're thinking about this story. Your support is great and I'm sp happy about your encouragment and all the love you gift me with. Please, keep going with it! :-)  
> And now, enjoy reading the new chapter!

Mario looked expectantly at Marco who thoughtfully chewed on his bottom lip, musing about the best way to tell Erik's stepbrother the black-haired teenager's story.

“I don't know all what probably has happened before he finally came to Munich, but, I will tell you what I know myself, Mario,” Marco finally said, playing unconsciously with his glass. Mario waited silently, knowing that this was hard for the young teacher who had understandable issues to tell him something he had promised to keep it confidential.

“You are right, Nuri is the eldest son and the heir of Sahin Enterprises. Savas Sahin built his company when Nuri was a little child in Dortmund where his family lived and when he realized how successful his company was, he decided to move to London with his headquarters, because the British government was one of the first governments that made a big contract with his company. Savas moved with his family to London and Nuri was raised there – that's the reason why he speaks English like a native speaker. He was raised with German, English and Turkish, of course, because a lot of Nuri's relatives still speak mostly Turkish. He went to school in London and you probably won't be surprised that it was a private school – Eton – I'm sure that you have heard of this 'famous' school.”

Marco gazed questioningly at Mario and Mario pulled a face and nodded his head. “Yes, I know what kind of school it is,” he said and Marco pulled a face, too.

“Nuri is very intelligent. Savas visited several psychologists and scientists and his IQ is very high, more than 130. He's highly talented.”

Marco paused for one moment and Mario reached out and took his cold hand in his own, smiling lovingly at his blonde boyfriend. He knew what Marco had had to endure, he himself was a highly talented footballer and therefore had been one of the 'cool' kids, but, he had known a boy who had had an high IQ and he had been a witness to what the other kids had done to this boy because of their jealousy.

Marco drew in a shaky breath. “But, he's also a young rebel and he hated Eton and and London. He did his best to be fired from the school he loathed and hated so much and after several tries, he succeeded, and even not the money Savas Sahin had earned could convince the director to take Nuri back. You are right, Savas Sahin is a strict and hard-minded businessman and he decided to send Nuri back to Dortmund where he should live under the strict regiment of his uncle and his aunt. They were supposed to treat him like their own children and he went to a public school and had to be careful with the small pocket money he got every month. To his father's surprise, Nuri behaved much better in Dortmund on that public school and so, he let him stay there for more than two years.”

Marco took a sip from his wine to wet his dry mouth and Mario stroked the back of his hand with his thumb, waiting patiently for the young teacher to continue. He couldn't help but like Nuri much better than he first had liked him after he finding out, who he actually was. Nuri obviously seemed to be a young man who considered other things as much more important as money and a high social status and Mario appreciated that, a lot.

“When the family moved to Munich last year, Nuri's mother became sick and she wanted her eldest son to be near her. Nuri agreed, but only if he was allowed to visit a public school again and live a 'normal' life. She's a little bit better now and Nuri actually wanted to go back to Dortmund when she had recovered fully, but, if I had to guess, I would say that he'd rather stay in Munich because of your brother who has stolen his heart that easily.”

Mario smiled weakly. “Nuri has stolen Erik's heart that easily, either,” he sighed, shaking his head. “Wow, what a story. He really seems to be some kind of a rebel. I mean, he's wearing a black leather biker jacket and washed out blue jeans with a white shirt – he looked like Marlon Brando or James Dean when I met him this afternoon.”

Marco nodded. “Yes, he is eighteen and he has the license to drive a motorbike. This is the only 'expensive' thing he likes I know about. He doesn't drive to school with his bike at the moment because of the snow, his mother asked him to take the bus until the winter is over and he promised that to her.”

Mario frowned. “Why does he is in Erik's class then, if he is as highly talented as you told me?” he inquired and Marco sighed. “Because of his rebellious years in England. Children like Nuri and me myself oftentimes have bad grades when they are unhappy and defiant and he did his best to have to repeat a year. Apart from that, he was allowed to pause with school for half a year when his mother became sick, due to his father's money, I guess. The education authority agreed to his father's request very quickly and you know how cash-strapped our authorities always are. He wanted to join my class. He surely wouldn't have had any problems with joining the graduation class directly, but, he threatened to become rebellious again and his father finally gave him the permission to join the eleventh class.”

“I see.” Mario absentmindedly chewed on his salad while he digested what he had learned about the young man who had become so important to his little brother. “You know pretty much about Nuri. Did his father tell you all of this?” he asked curiously. He had gotten the impression that Nuri's father was no one who shared any more information than he had to with the 'unimportant' teacher of his son.  
Not, that Marco was unimportant, neither for Mario himself, nor for Erik or Marco's other pupils and their parents, but, Savas Sahin most likely didn't think the same of the uncommon blonde teacher who had become the love of Mario's life within only a few days.

Marco shook his head. “No. His aunt told me that. She accompanied Nuri to Munich and told his story to me. She loves Nuri as if he were her own son and she does her best to help him. His father doesn't know that I know so much about his family and I want it to stay that way. So please, keep it confidential, Mario. I really have a bad conscience that I already told you so much, but, I know how hard it is for you to be responsible for Erik during your parents' long absence. That's the only reason why I told you what I know about him.”

Mario gently pressed Marco's hand, smiling at him. “I have to thank you for your trust and I won't betray you, Marco, I promise you. I won't tell it to anybody, and I surely won't tell it to Erik. Nuri seems to be a fine young man and I do believe that he loves Erik. The only problem is that Nuri's father won't allow his son to have a boyfriend, especially not Erik.”

Marco stared out of the window without really seeing something. “I know, Mario. But, all you can do is to be there for Erik when he needs you. You can't forbid him from seeing Nuri and spending time with him.”

Mario swallowed against the lump in his throat. Erik wasn't the only one with a secret and forbidden love. “I know, Marco,” he whispered. “I know.”

 

\--------------------------------------------------------

 

When Mario finally came home, it was pretty late and he knew that he probably would be in trouble the next day because of too little sleep, but, he couldn't have cared less. After their dinner, they had made love again, hungry and desperate to be as close to each other as possible. Mario had to leave the next day because of their away match in Wolfsburg and they had wanted to make the best out of their evening.

He hung his jacket on the coat rack, deeply lost in his thoughts. When he noticed the light coming from the living room, he frowned, because it was pretty late and Erik had promised him to go to bed early.

He opened the door to the living room and stepped inside, looking around. Erik lay on the couch under a cover, embracing a pillow and watching TV. He looked lost and confused and Mario couldn't be be angry with him as he noticed his brother's state. He closed the door and crossed the room to sit down on the couch beside his brother.

Erik looked up at him, blushing slightly. “I'm sorry, Mario. I went to bed and tried to sleep, but, I simply couldn't and so I thought that I would get tired if I watched something boring on TV...” he apologized and Mario gently ruffled the younger one's hair. He hadn't looked at the TV, but, he did now and chuckled as he realized that Erik had chosen the opera channel. A lot of people surely wouldn't have agreed with Erik that operas were actually boring, but, for a seventeen years old boy, Richard Wagner's 'Twilight of the Gods' certainly was. He stared at the screen for one moment and his sudden wish to go the opera with Marco almost overwhelmed him.

Mario blinked and swallowed hard, gifting his little stepbrother with a shaky smile. “I'm not angry with you, Erik,” he assured him gently and Erik relaxed relieved and snuggled closer to Mario. Mario stroked his hair and for a while, they watched the opera in companionable silence. Erik was still tense and as he finally had found his courage to ask Mario the question he obviously had wanted to ask for a rather long time, Mario knew instantly what was going on.

“Mario, do – do I have to stay with Matze when you're in Wolfsburg?”

Mario bit his lip, considering the boy who looked at him with pleading eyes. Oh, Mario knew exactly why Erik didn't want to stay with Matze. “Are you sure that you want to stay two days alone at home, Erik?” he asked back and Erik vigorously nodded his head.

“Yes, Mario, please. I swear you that I won't do anything stupid. No party, no alcohol and I will do my homework, I promise you.” He looked so sincerely and honestly and Mario simply couldn't deny him his wish. He knew so well how Erik felt and although Mario had serious doubts about Erik's relationship with Nuri, but, he wanted him to be happy with the other boy as long as possible.

“You have to promise me that you will sleep enough and that you will eat properly, Erik. Not only chips and chocolate. I must be sure that I can count on you and you will cook for yourself.” Both brothers had learned to cook due to their parent's long absences oftentimes.

Erik beamed at him. “I promise you, Mario! You really let me stay at home?” He sounded so happy that Mario couldn't help but feel happy, as well.

“All right, we have a deal, then. But if something happens, you have to call Matze and his parents, Erik. You are not of age and you have to give me your word on that.” Mario hesitated. “You could also call Mr. Reus if needed, I'm sure that he would help you, too,” he added, silently and Erik looked at him, surprised.

“Do you really think that he wouldn't mind?” he inquired astonished and Mario stroked his hair again. “He wouldn't, Erik. He truly cares for you.” _'As much as I do,'_ he added in his thoughts, but didn't speak that out loud.

Erik smiled happily. “Mr, Reus is great! I like him, a lot. The one who will win his heart some day will be a very lucky one,” he mused and Mario began to cough, heavily.

Erik flinched. “Did I say something wrong?” he inquired and Mario gulped for air. “No, no, I only choked on my own saliva,” he gasped out when he finally had caught his breath again.

Erik considered him thoughtfully, but didn't say anything. After a few seconds, he sat up and wrapped his arms around Mario. “Thank you, Mario, you're the best brother in the entire world. I won't betray your trust, I promise you!”

Mario embraced him and held him tight. “I believe you,” he murmured into the fragrant brown hair. “And now, you will go to bed, okay?”

Erik let go of him and smiled. “Yes, this opera really made me feel tired,” he admitted with a mischievous smile. He jumped on his feet and waved at Mario, before he rushed out of the living room, his shouts of joy still audible when he was out of sight.

Mario shook his head, smiling and curled himself up on the couch where Erik had lain. He watched the opera for a while, imaging that he were at the theater with Marco by his side, enjoying the opera there. Finally, he got really tired and stood up, switching off the TV. He checked the other rooms and was just about to go downstairs when the doorbell rang all of a sudden.

Mario frowned and went to the door, looking through the door viewer. It was close to midnight and he had no clue who might want to talk to him at this late hour. The doorbell rang again and Mario disbelievingly gulped for air as he saw the person standing outside. His stomach dropped and he knew that he would have no other choice than top let this person in if he didn't want to get into trouble with his neighbors.

Mario opened the door and scowled at the young woman standing before the door, crossing his arms before his chest.

“Ann-Kathrin! It's almost midnight! What the hell are you doing here?”


	17. Making Up Their Minds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ann-Kathrin showed up again, late in the night. Will she be able to win Mario back? And what about Erik? Did he realize that there is someone new in Mario's life?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This probably has to be considered as a filler chapter again, but, it is also important for the whole plot.  
> You're the best audience, ever, thank you for your great support, I love to write for you! Please, tell me what your thinking about this chapter, leave kudos or comments if you liked it!  
> I'm eager to let Erik and Nuri be alone again and this chapter is the 'preparation' for their quality time in the next chapter. 
> 
> Have fun reading!

“Ann-Kathrin! It's almost midnight! What are you doing here?” Mario repeated, staring disbelievingly at his former girlfriend.

“Making you a scene right here in front of your door if you don't let me in your house. It's cold,” she snapped, rubbing her arms covered only by a thin jacket showing her figure in a very appealing way. Or would have shown it in a very appealing way if Mario had still been interested in her.

He sighed. “Fair enough, come in,” he agreed with obvious reluctance. He moved to the side to let her in and she threw her head back, her long hair whirling around her with the movement, shooting him a reproachful look before she stepped into the house.

Mario followed her. “You will be quiet and silent, Ann-Kathrin,” he warned her, gesturing to her to enter the living room. “Erik has to go to school tomorrow and he needs his sleep.” He didn't bother to take her jacket and she put it on again when she realized that he wouldn't allow her to make herself comfortable in his home.

Ann-Kathrin sat down on the couch, crossing her arms before her chest, making sure that Mario would have a good look at her breasts when he gazed at her. Her attempts to make him regret his decision to break up with her were useless though, she probably could have danced on the table in all her naked glory without arousing his desire again. Mario had found his soul-mate, the love of his life and he wasn't interested in any other living being any longer.

“Erik, Erik, Erik! All you care about is your dull stepbrother!” She hissed and Mario angrily narrowed his eyes.

“You are in my house, it's almost midnight and you're speaking about my little brother,” he growled dangerously, leaning against the door-frame and mirroring her posture by crossing his own arms over his broad chest. “You can forget the 'step', Ann-Kathrin! He's my brother and I don't care if we share the same blood or not. I don't know why you think that insulting my brother would make me taking you back – that's simply ridiculous! Are you really that dense, Ann-Kathrin?” he inquired with obvious annoyance in his flat voice.

Ann-Kathrin changed her attitude, her lips began to tremble and her eyes began to water as if someone had ordered her to cry. Mario shook his head, torn between his anger and his admiration for her dramatic abilities.

“Ann-Kathrin, this won't work. I don't love you any longer and our time together is over and out. Please, accept that. Nothing what you might try will make me taking you back as my girlfriend,” he said, feeling utterly exhausted all of a sudden. His worries about Erik and his brother's feelings for Nuri had taken their toll and the knowledge that he wouldn't be able to lie in Marco's arms during the next couple days didn't make him feel any better. All he wanted to do was curling himself up in his bed and sleep.

Ann-Kathrin looked up at him with pleading eyes. “I'm sorry, darling!” she sobbed theatrically. “I will never ever say something bad about Erik, but, please, give us another chance!”

Mario only shook his head, balling his fist to keep himself from pulling her up from the couch and throw her out of the house the hard way. “I'm sure that you will find another footballer you can pose in public with, Ann-Kathrin,” he remarked dryly, watching her faked tears rolling down over her pale cheeks unimpressed. At least, her makeup was perfect. Not one black streak smearing underneath her eyes because of the teardrops blemished her pretty face. Every daily soap showing on TV would be glad to have her as one of the actors.

“W-w-who i-is s-s-she?”

Mario blinked. “What?” he asked back, frowning and taken aback.

The young woman sitting on his couch kneaded her hands. “Who is she? Do I know her?” Ann-Kathrin's furtive glance from underneath her wet eyelashes might have fooled anyone else who didn't know her and might take this glance as a sign of her innocence and true despair, but, it was lost on Mario who knew her too well to let himself be fooled by her any longer.

“There is no other she,” he only said, looking her firmly in the eyes. He wouldn't tell her about Marco, no way. He wasn't ashamed of his feelings for the blonde teacher and he had made his peace with his attraction to men a long time ago, but, telling Ann-Kathrin about Marco would be a blank invitation to blackmail him and – even worse – Marco. He just as well could go straight to the headquarters of 'Bild' and tell them about his relationship with a man himself, this probably would cause less damage than letting his former girlfriend do it.

“But, there has to be another she! It can't be that you just sent me away and have no other girl! I will find out who she is and you will regret the day you broke up with me, I promise you!” she screamed and Mario tensed.

“I told you not to scream and I also told you that there is no other girl. Leave my house, Ann-Kathrin, you're not welcome here any longer,” he told her, his voice quiet, but with a dangerous undertone. “You know where the exit is.”

Ann-Kathrin gaped at him, her mouth hanging open and her pretty face didn't look pretty at all, right now. When Mario did nothing than just point in the direction of the exit with his finger, she slowly stood up, crossing the room and passing him. Her breasts and hips grazed him as she did so and Mario instinctively flinched, trying to avoid her touch.

If looks could have killed, her murderous glance would have sent him dead to the ground, instantly, but, Mario held his ground, his eyes telling her that he had said the truth about his feelings long-gone for her.

When he heard the door slamming shut behind her, Mario just slipped down to the ground along the door-frame until he was sitting on the floor, crouched to a small ball. This hadn't been the last time he had seen her, Mario knew that for sure. Ann-Kathrin would take her vengeance and Mario feared the day she would do so.

 

\----------------------------------------------

 

Erik sat in the classroom, watching his teacher Mr. Reus intently. He should have listened to what the blonde teacher was talking about, but, something very important distracted him from the lesson. The previous evening, when he had embraced his brother, he had smelled another aftershave emanating from Mario. The aftershave Mr. Reus normally used.

Erik might be young and inexperienced, but, he was neither that innocent, nor was he dense. He had noticed the way Mario's eyes lit up every time he spoke about Erik's class teacher and he had also noticed that Mario had long phone-talks late in the evenings. He hadn't asked Mario with whom he had had dinner and he also hadn't asked with whom he had spent the evening yesterday, but, he had seen the rosy cheeks, the still red and swollen lips and he had smelled the slight scent of sex. Erik had never slept with someone, neither a girl, nor a boy, but, he had jerked himself off oftentimes enough to know how sex actually smelled. Erik was gifted with a very sensitive sense of smell and he had been able to detect this special scent not covered completely by Mario's shower-gel and aftershave. Yes, the aftershave. Mr. Reus used a very special aftershave Erik had never smelled on one of the other teachers, a fresh and herbal scent Erik liked a lot, because it wasn't as penetrating as some of the aftershaves the elder male teachers used.

And yesterday, he had smelled this special aftershave on his brother Mario, intermingling with Mario's favorite eau de cologne. He had embraced him and smelled this unique scent and seen the redness at Mario's neck, where the stubble of another man had scratched over the skin during the sex.

And now, he sat here, watching Mr. Reus and noticing the same slightly red marks on his teacher's pale neck. He saw the same happiness in the warm blue eyes of his admired and adored teacher and if Erik wasn't totally wrong then, he knew what all of this meant: Mario and Mr. Reus had fallen in love with each other. Because, Erik could see quite well that it had to be more than just friends with benefits. Mario would never do something that risky if it wasn't because he was crazy in love with Mr. Reus – Marco. Not to mention that his teacher wouldn't risk his job and Mario's career if he didn't feel the same way. He was far too honest to do that, Erik was sure about that.

Erik didn't know how he himself felt about this love. Of course, he was happy for both of them, but, he also knew that their love could end tragically. Even more if Ann-Kathrin showed up again. He had heard Mario's dispute with her and he knew that she wouldn't give up her tries until she had reached her goal and won Mario back or destroyed his life.

“Erik, is everything okay with you?” Matze's silent whisper broke in on his musings. He turned his head and smiled reassuringly at his best friend. “Yes, Matze, thank you. Everything is fine,” he murmured, straightening his shoulders. All he could do was be there for Mario when his brother needed him like Mario was always be there for him. He wouldn't allow anybody to hurt his beloved elder brother or his adored teacher.

If they loved each other, then, Erik was fine and content with that and he would do all he could do to protect them. Mr. Reus was a fine young man and if someone deserved to be with his beloved brother, then it was Marco Reus. And if someone deserved to be with his admired teacher who had done so much for him, then it was his elder brother Mario.  
He would keep their secret and wait until Mario was ready to talk to him and in the meantime, he would do his best to protect them and help them without telling them that he knew about their secret relationship.

Erik focused on Mr. Reus' words again, pushing his musings back into a hidden corner of his mind.

This afternoon, Nuri would come home with him again. They would learn English together and maybe they would kiss again. Mario had left their house and they would be alone and undisturbed. Maybe, Nuri could even stay overnight...

Erik shot a hidden glance at the black-haired elder teenager sitting opposite him and when Nuri sensed his eyes upon him, he looked up and smiled at him. Erik smiled back, happily and carefree. Nuri winked at him with his right eye before he concentrated on his book again and Erik suppressed a wistful sigh and did the same.

Only a few hours and he would be alone with Nuri and maybe learn why Mario and Marco Reus looked the way they did when they had been together, with rosy cheeks, shining eyes and a stupid and happy smile upon their faces the entire time. Maybe, he would learn how it was to actually love someone and make love to him.

He looked at Nuri again, a quick and brief glance to not arouse any suspicion.

This time, Nuri didn't return his gaze, but, a small tender smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, telling Erik that he had sensed his wistful look. This time, Erik allowed the silent wistful sight to slip out of his mouth.

Sometimes, life was just wonderful.


	18. A Wonderful Sunny Winter Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erik invited Nuri over and they just came home from school. Mario is away and they are alone. But, Erik promised Mario to cook while he is alone and two teenager boys certainly will be hungry like wolfes after school. Plus, Nuri has to keep his promise to learn English with Erik. But, there are different ways to do so...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to write only one chapter about Erik and Nuri being alone, but, as always, my sweet boys had other plans. They came home and got hungry and so, I had to write about that first. The next chapter will be the one you are waiting for, I promise!  
> I'm stunned and speechless about your wonderful feedback and encouragment, please, keep up with it and leave kudos or comments if you like this chapter, as well! :-)

Erik fiddled with his keys nervously, trying to open the front door without letting the keys fall down to the ground and making a complete fool of himself. He was very aware of Nuri's warm body standing next to him and the wonderful chocolate-brown eyes watching him closely. He bit his lip, unable to turn the key in the lock with his trembling fingers.

“May I?” The soft dark voice close to his ear, filled with tender amusement, sent shivers over his spine and the warm hand covering his own made him hard and aching for being touched on other parts of his body. Nuri's breath tickled the sensitive skin right behind his earlobe and Erik couldn't suppress the silent needy moan that slipped out of his mouth against his will. Nuri chuckled, but it was a wonderful sound, showing all the tenderness and love the elder one felt for him. “No need to be so nervous, my sweet Erik. I would never do something you're not ready for,” Nuri whispered almost inaudible into his ear, his lips ghosting briefly over his cheek, grazing his temple while the black-haired teenager turned the key without any difficulties.

The door sprang open and Nuri embraced Erik from behind and gently pushed him into the corridor while he stepped forward. He closed the door with a firm kick of his foot and griped Erik's upper arms to turn him around. Erik swallowed as he saw the strong feelings in the endless dark eyes looking sincerely at him.

“Nothing will happen what you don't want, Erik, I promise you. Don't you ever doubt that,” he said, stroking Erik's heated cheek with his thumb. Erik smiled shyly at him. “I didn't think that. It's only – I'm afraid that I will disappoint you. I have no experiences and maybe you will think that I'm dense or...”

Nuri's hungry lips silenced his attempts to apologize for something that hadn't happened until now very effectively and Erik gasped out in surprise. Nuri took advantage of his opened mouth, instantly, his clever tongue slipping between his lips and into the sweet cavern, exploring it thoroughly, making sure that Erik knew to whom he now belonged. He pulled him close to his body and his hands wandered down from his arms to his waist, embracing the brunette teenager tightly and all Erik could do was melting against the other boy, surrendering to the kiss and wrapping his own arms around Nuri's neck. Erik didn't know how Nuri did this, but Erik felt as if he did not only claim his mouth, but also his heart and his soul with every lick and caress and with every stroke of his passionate tongue and with every playful bite and nibbling of his tender lips, kissing Erik as if his life depended on it.

When the black-haired young man finally let go of Erik's bruised lips, his head was spinning and his knees had turned into jelly. Erik clung to Nuri's shoulders, glad that he had something to hold on. Nuri placed chaste kisses on his hot cheeks and his nose, his eyelids and then, his lips again.

“You don't have to be experienced or something 'special', Erik,” he whispered during the kisses. “You only have to be yourself. You only have to be Erik. You're perfect just the way you are, my sweet Erik, believe me.”

Erik smiled happily. “Are you sure? I mean, I...”

Nuri gently laid his finger on Erik's still tingling mouth. “I have never been so sure about anything, Erik.” He let go of Erik's waist and took his face in his hands. “I fell in love with the wonderful sweet Erik who now stands before me and I don't want you to be anyone else than just you,” he murmured, kissing him again. Soft short kisses with closed lips, and Erik closed his eyes and let himself be kissed with a content sigh.

“I'm in love with you, too,” he croaked out, his whole body aching with longing and need.

Nuri kissed him one last time on each eyelid. “I know. How about we get rid of our jackets and move this to the kitchen? You promised to cook for me?”

Erik's eyes flew open. “Oh, you – you!” he stammered, slapping Nuri on his arm. Nuri grinned mischievously at him and Erik couldn't be angry with him for a long time. “Now, I know why you fell in love with me. You searched for someone who would cook for you,” he groused, but without much emphasis.

Nuri snickered. “You revealed my dark secret!” Erik scowled at him, playfully, but Nuri only chuckled, pulling his jacket over his shoulder. “Don't worry, my sweet Erik. I know how to cook myself. And I will do it for you someday. Now, get out of this jacket.”

Erik obeyed, hanging his jacket into the wardrobe and then, doing the same with Nuri's leather jacket, stroking with his fingers over it before he closed the wardrobe. When he realized that Nuri watched him, he blushed again, but, Nuri's tender smile assured him that his behavior was much appreciated. “I envy your jacket. It is allowed to embrace you,” he admitted sheepishly and Nuri's smile deepened. “I know, Erik, I envy your jacket, as well. It embraces _you_.”

Erik took his hand, snickering and pulled him in the direction of the large and friendly kitchen.

“Do you like spaghetti Bolognese?” he asked nervously, bending forward to rummage in the refrigerator. When Nuri didn't answer, he turned around to look at him, questioningly. “Of course, I bought minced beef only...” he rambled on, uncertainly, because Nuri had a strange look in his eyes and he apparently had stared at something in the height of his... butt. Nuri must have stared at his butt. Erik blushed furiously.

To his surprise, Nuri blushed, too, as he saw Erik's knowing look. “What?” he defended himself. “Your ass is the sweetest and most perfect ass I've ever seen!” A huge grin spread upon Erik's handsome and delicate face. “Really?” he made sure and Nuri nodded his head. “Really. And spaghetti are fine with me, Erik,” he assured him, his voice raw with strangled emotions.

Erik was still grinning as he began to cook. He felt Nuri's hungry eyes watching his every move and every step and he loved it. He loved the feeling of being desired and wanted so much by the wonderful young man leaning against one of the cupboards. He unconsciously whistled silently to himself while he chopped onions and tomatoes together with basil and the familiar activities calmed him down and helped him to relax. Nuri's astonished voice broke in on his whistling: “You don't use packet sauce?” he inquired curiously.

Erik frowned. “Packet sauce?! Are you kidding me? Mario and I never use 'packet sauce'! Mario would kill me if he learned that I have used packet sauce!” He mistrustfully narrowed his eyes. “You said that you could cook. Do you use ready-made sauce?”

Nuri slowly shook his head. “No. My aunt would kill me, either. I only thought... I'm sorry for underestimating you, Erik.” He smiled sheepishly, shrugging his shoulders.

Erik grinned. “You can make up for it by boiling the water,” he commanded and Nuri bowed his head and took the pot Erik handed to him, holding it under the water stream.

For a while, they were busied with cooking and Erik found himself whistling again. Nuri stole sweet kisses from him now and then and Erik didn't know the last time he had been so happy and content. This feelings lasted exactly until Nuri suddenly considered him with pursed lips. “I promised to learn English with you. I know the perfect way to do that.”

Erik now pursed his lips, too, already suspecting that he wouldn't like whatever it was that Nuri now had in his mind. “And how do you want to do it?” he drawled and Nuri grinned and winked at him with his left eye.

“We will only speak English from now on,” he told Erik, changing into the language he seemed to understand and speak so easily and Erik had so much difficulties with.

“What? You're kidding me, right?” he cried out and Nuri crossed his arms before his chest and looked at him, strictly.

“Try it again, Erik. Speak English with me,” he ordered and Erik bit his lips. “Y-you – can't be s-s-serious?” he stammered unsure, trying to remember the right words he had to use. Nuri contentedly nodded his head in agreement.

“This was a good start, Erik!” he praised him, adding then: “I am serious, believe me, my sweet Erik.”

Erik only growled. “You can set up the table!” he snapped without thinking and Nuri clapped his hands. “Wow. You're better with English if you're angry. I have to make you angry then, I guess” he stated. Erik cried out again, reproachfully, but, Nuri's lips on his own soothed him, immediately.

“I will reward you with lots of kisses for every sentence without mistakes,” he challenged the brunette and Erik knew that he would do everything Nuri wanted him to do if he got kisses like the one in the corridor for it after wards.

“I will also check later if you're that good with English when you're aroused in another way than being angry with me.” Nuri's voice whispered into his ear, his lips grazing Erik's soft cheek. Erik had shaved before school and the stubble hadn't grown much until now. Erik shivered as the puffs of Nuri's warm breath caressed his face.

“I hate you, you know that?” he complained helplessly, but, Nuri's tender eyes let him forget his annoyance very quickly. “No, Erik, you don't. You love me just as much as I love you,” the black-haired teenager murmured before he captured his lips in another tender and passionate kiss, his tongue reminding Erik of the pleasures that awaited him later.

Erik sighed and relaxed, wrapping his arms around his first love again, losing himself in the sensation of the sweet and loving kiss. Their undisturbed day together only had just begun and Erik sighed again, savoring the feeling of Nuri's warm and soft lips on his own to the fullest.

They would eat the delicious spaghetti and speak English all the time and after that, Nuri hopefully would teach Erik some things he didn't know, but craved to get to know so badly. The day was young and full of promises and Erik was looking forward to what would come next.

The delicious smell of the boiling sauce and the pasta filled the air and the sun shined through the large window, the first sunshine since almost one week. A brave lonely bird sang his song outside the window, a cheerful and happy serenade for the two boys deeply in love standing in the kitchen, kissing each other with all the love and passion they felt for each other and if anyone would have seen them right now, they would have had to admit that it was truly a wonderful sunny winter day.


	19. The Sweetest Kiss Of All

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erik and Nuri are alone. First Erik has cooked for Nuri. Nuri ordered him to speak only English. What will happen next? Will Nuri teach Erik a few other things, as well?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to apologize, but, the one chapter I actually had planed for Nuri's and Erik's day together will have at least one more chapter, so you have to wait for Marco and Mario being back in this story a while longer. I hope that you won't be too angry with me because of this change.  
> This chapter is about a topic that could happen easily to an unexperienced young man crazy in love and it's the first chapter told from Nuri's POV.
> 
> Please, give me feedback, leave kudos or comments if you liked it, I'm a little bit unsure this time and I really want to know what you're thinking!

They had eaten the spaghetti with delight and with the astonishing appetite only two young teenage boys could have and Nuri had listened to Erik speaking English much better and much more self-confident with every minute that had passed with joy and amazement. After the brunette's first attempts that had been only a confused stutter, Erik had gotten used to the unfamiliar language surprisingly quickly and Nuri's heart threatened to burst with the love, the pride and the joy he felt when the other boy told a funny story about his brother to him without any single mistake.

It was obvious that Erik considered Mario Götze as his 'true' brother, not caring about the different blood that rushed through their veins. Nuri hadn't been so sure about Erik's elder stepbrother and he had been very aware of the appraising look Mario had shot him, knowing what that meant – namely that Mario had recognized him and knew quite well who he actually was. Nuri had expected and feared at the same time that Mario instantly would share his knowledge with his younger brother, telling him that Nuri's father was a rich businessman who had made a contract with Mario's club, but, Mario Götze had surprised him by not telling Erik about it. He actually had decided to give Nuri the chance of telling Erik about his family himself and Nuri had been deeply grateful for that. Only Götze's look at Nuri had held a clear warning:

_'If you hurt my brother, then I will make your life a living hell.'_

Nuri had gotten the unspoken message right away and he knew that he had to tell Erik about his family and his background sooner rather than later, although everything inside him reacted against it. Erik loved him for what he actually was – Nuri, a teenager at the verge of becoming a young man, searching for his place in this confusing world, and not for what others saw in him – the heir of Sahin enterprises and the one who had to see to the next heir after him with a nice Turkish girl, as well.

But, he didn't want to do it today. This day was their first day alone together. It was the first day they could get to know each other better, share sweet kisses and maybe even more, and this day seemed to be almost magically. Nuri wouldn't do anything that would ruin this special day. He looked at Erik, enjoying the wonderful sight of the handsome brown-haired boy who was still speaking about his brother – in English – his cheeks rosy and his eyes shining with his joy and happiness. Nuri also appreciated Mario's protectiveness towards his little brother, even if that meant that he could become Nuri's adversary. Knowing that Erik had someone who cared so much for him would make Nuri feel better when he wasn't there to protect Erik himself.

When the younger one noticed Nuri's intense stare, the rosiness deepened and his cheeks flushed with a wonderful pink. “What? Got something on my face?” he repeated the question Nuri had asked him only few days ago before their first date in the Italian restaurant.

Nuri smiled, nodding vigorously his head. “Yes!” he said and Erik gulped for air, rubbing with his hands over his cheeks. “W-w-what? W-w-where?” he stammered.

Nuri chuckled very pleased. “Beauty, my sweet Erik. You got beauty in your face,” the black-haired teenager answered tenderly, his eyes traveling adoringly over his sweet boyfriend who stood before the kitchen sink, washing the dishes while Nuri dried them with a towel.

“Uh, thank you,” Erik murmured with a shy smile. He handed the last plate to the elder one who dried it while Erik put the clean dishes back into the cupboard. When they were done, Nuri took Erik's hand, leading him to the living room. He had sensed Erik's nervousness and thought it better to sit down on the couch first before lying on Erik's bed with him. Erik would be much more relaxed when he realized that Nuri would keep his promise and do nothing Erik wasn't ready for and that they would take things slow at the beginning.

Erik followed him with shining eyes and a happy smile and Nuri knew that he would everything he could do to make Erik look like this every single day in the future, no matter the cost.

 

\--------------------------------------------------

 

They sat down on the couch and Erik snuggled close to Nuri, wrapping his arms around the black-haired teenager and looking longingly at him. It was apparent that he wanted to be kissed, getting the promised reward for his tough attempts of speaking the language he had so much trouble with and Nuri was more than willing and happy to obey and repay Erik for his braveness. He pulled the younger one in his lap, his arms circling the slim waist and tilting his head back, slightly, because Erik was a little bit taller in this position. Erik let out one of these small wistful sounds Nuri had come to love so much and bent his head to kiss him.

He had closed his eyes unconsciously and Nuri feasted his eyes on the wonderful sight in front of him for one moment, before he closed his eyes, too, now debauching in the feeling of Erik's soft and warm lips pressed shyly against his own.

Nuri took control of the kiss when he felt that Erik was still too unsure to kiss him the way he wanted to be kissed. His sweet boyfriend would learn to show Nuri what he wanted and needed very soon and he would become more self-confident, as well, the black-haired young man was sure about that. Until this happened, Nuri was fine with being the active part and giving both of them what they craved for and what they wanted.

His tongue slipped between the the brunette's trembling lips, demanding entrance and Erik gladly obeyed and opened them for the tender explorer that ached to claim once more what Erik had already relinquished to him so willingly before. The cheeky and curious conqueror darted into the younger one's mouth, teasing him with playful licks and caresses, marking every spot within its reach as his. Erik let Nuri mark and claim him, making sweet noises in his throat and melting against him and when Nuri finally invited his tongue to dance with him, he buried his hands into Nuri's short black hair and kissed him back almost desperately.

Nuri sighed, losing all track of time while he gave himself to the sensation of this wonderful loving kiss, his hands stroking and exploring Erik's back, his waist and every part of the shivering body on his lap he could caress in this position. Erik had begun to move in his lap, rubbing with his oh so tempting and perfectly rounded backside against Nuri's hardening member and Nuri moaned silently because Erik's innocent tries to get more friction threatened to blow out all reason the elder one still possessed, arousing the overwhelming urge in him to rip the clothes from Erik's body and make him his, completely and in every possible way. He tried to pull away from the sweet torture, but, Erik's movements had become frantically, pressing his own needy and jeans-covered rock-hard dick against Nuri's groin with every push and every shove, while he clung to his shoulder-blades and kissed him with a hunger Nuri simply couldn't resist.

Nuri was experienced enough to sense that Erik was surprisingly close to his orgasm just from their passionate kiss and the almost innocent rubbing and he couldn't help but shift his weight a little bit to help Erik getting more friction, deepening the kiss until his lips almost hurt from being stretched that widely. He kneaded Erik's wonderful ass, increasing the speed of Erik's movements with that to make sure that Erik wouldn't have any problems with coming this way. Nuri didn't mind it, at all, because, if he had anything to say in this matter, then, Erik would come for him more than once tonight.

He opened his eyes again to watch his boyfriend's face, because he really didn't want to miss the wonderful sight of Erik reaching his first high in his arms and the brunette didn't disappoint him, panting heavily into Nuri's mouth as he lost the small rest of his self-control, arching his back and shivering violently in time to the shudders of pleasure that wrecked him as he came hard, filling his briefs and his jeans with his hot and wet release. His face was suffused with his passion and Nuri struggled hard not to come himself just from the wonderful sight of his beloved Erik being caught up in his ecstasy and satisfaction so rapturously. Oh, how he loved his sweet Erik, not really a boy anymore but also not a grown up man yet. Erik was a perfect mixture of both and Nuri knew that he would never ever love someone like he loved this young man with those beautiful hazel-green eyes and the sweetest smile Nuri had ever seen.

He kissed him through his climax until Erik relaxed, dropping against him, a sated, boneless mess, dazed from the incredible satisfaction he had experienced only seconds before. Nuri closed his arms around him, giving him the time to recover although his own body literally screamed for release. He would get his reward later, he knew that for sure and he was patient enough to wait for this moment.

But, first they had to go through what would come next and Nuri embraced the brunette tightly to keep Erik from jumping to his feet and flee from him when the daze of the aftermath from his ecstasy finally faded, giving place for the realization what just had happened and the shame and embarrassment that would come with it.

He didn't have to wait for long, because after two or three minutes, Erik suddenly tensed, struggling to get up and rush out of the room. Nuri had to suppress a tender chuckle, because he suspected that Erik would take it the wrong way, thinking that Nuri was laughing at him and not that he simply was so pleased by his reaction to their kiss.

“Erik, don't, please, don't fret, everything's fine, sweetheart, please, relax,” he whispered, still speaking English. The term of endearment came naturally, because that's what Erik was, his sweetheart. He knew that a lot of stupid people would have raised their eyebrows if they had heard calling one boy another boy by a tender nickname, but, no one was here and in this special situation, Erik needed every little reassurance that there was nothing to be ashamed of he could get.

Nuri kissed his fragrant tousled hair, rocking him gently. “Erik, please, look at me,” he asked the brown-haired boy, but, Erik buried his face deeper on Nuri's shoulder, shaking vigorously his head.

“I'm sorry, I – I – oh God, I didn't...” he croaked out, his voice almost inaudible because of the white shirt his nose and mouth were buried in. To Nuri's astonishment, Erik was also still speaking English, either, and his stutter wasn't caused by his problems with the unfamiliar language but, by his shame and his despair.

“Sweetheart, please, look at me. You were perfect, wonderful and I loved it. I love you, Erik, just the way you are,” he assured him tenderly, kissing his hair and his ear, trying to lift his chin up. Erik turned his head away, still deeply ashamed, but, he gave up his struggles and stayed on Nuri's lap.

“Really?” he mumbled against his neck and Nuri nodded.

“Really. I could have stopped you, if I actually had wanted to, but, I didn't. I wanted you to come from this kiss and I enjoyed it more than I can tell you,” he confessed, his voice hoarse with his own ardor. He was still hard and aching and he shifted his weight and let Erik feel his own unfulfilled desire. “I was close myself, but I wanted to focus on you and enjoy your pleasure first.”

Erik murmured something unintelligible against his skin, but, after one more moment of hesitation, he slowly and reluctantly raised his head. His eyes were lowered to Nuri's chest and the elder one could see the deep redness on his soft rounded cheeks, but, at least, Nuri could see his face again.

“You don't think that I made a fool of myself?” Erik whispered, the redness becoming even darker.

“No, sweetheart, I don't think that, at all. I think that you are the most wonderful being walking on Earth. I think that you are the most amazing, beautiful and perfect young man who ever lived and I think that you are perfect and adorable. You are my boyfriend, my sweet Erik and I love you more than I ever loved someone and more than I ever will love someone.”

Now, Erik gazed at him from underneath his thick brown eyelashes and Nuri's heart missed several beats before it began to race. “What a wonderful love declaration!” the younger one said, a happy smile making his handsome face lightening up. “I love you, too Nuri. I didn't know that one could love like I love you.”

Nuri reached out, stroking the heated soft cheek. “You don't know how much this means to me, Erik,” he told him, tenderly. “Why don't you take a quick shower and change your clothes? I will wait here for you, Erik. You don't have to fear that I will be gone when you come back to me.”

Erik hesitated, torn between his wish to have some time to his own to win back his control and his fear that Nuri would leave him while he got out of the sticky and damp clothes and taking the shower he longed to take.

“Please, trust me, Erik. I would never do that to you. Apart from that, I want to show you what else we can do to pleasure each other despite from kissing,” Nuri purred in his most seductive voice and Erik reacted instantly to this promise, shifting uncomfortably his weight as his cock twitched in his wet briefs, showing its new interest in what Nuri wanted to do with him. Nuri smiled as he sensed the movement underneath the jeans. He had been right. Erik was a young man, as crazy in love as he himself and he didn't need that much time to recover from his first climax.

Erik nodded. “You will still be here?” he asked one last time and Nuri kissed him gently on his bruised lips. “You have my word, sweetheart. Now, go. The sooner you go, the sooner you will be back with me,” he ordered and Erik got up and rushed out of the room, turning his head and sending him a kiss through the air before he disappeared.

Nuri drew in a shaky breath and leaned against the seat back of the couch, closing his eyes and trying to calm himself down a little bit. To be honest, he needed a little time of his own himself, because his strong feelings for the other guy overwhelmed and confused him, as well. Nuri had never felt anything like this before and he had to sort a few things out before he could be the patient and understanding boyfriend Erik needed him to be when they enjoyed other less innocent pleasures for the first time.

The ringing of his cell phone broke in on his musings and he got up with a groan because his still hard arousal pressed painfully against his tight jeans, while he rummaged in his school bag lying on the floor next to the entrance, finally pulling his annoyingly ringing phone out of it.

When he checked the caller's ID, he sighed, but, he knew that he had no other chance than to pick up the phone.

“Hey, mom, what's up?” he asked changing into Turkish as he always did when he talked to his mother, steeling himself for the inevitable. This time, he wouldn't give in, no way, no matter how hard it would be. After all, Nuri had a promise to keep, a promise he had given the most wonderful being in this world and Nuri would keep the promise he had made, whatever it might cost him.


	20. A Magical And Wonderful Winter Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After their sweet and passionate kiss, Erik has to take a shower and Nuri get a call from his mom. Will he leave Erik alone or will he stay?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed some fluff again and romance and I wanted to thank you for your wonderful support and feedback with a fast update. Almost 7500 hits and so many kudos, you're such a great audience! It would be great to reach the 300 kudos maybe with this chapter?  
> I hope you will enjoy it as much as my sweet boys did and I have to admit that there will be one more chapter about them, before Marco and Mario show up again. 
> 
> Anyway, enjoy and please, keep up your great support! :-)

Nuri slumped down on the couch again, pressing his phone against his ear.

“Nuri, where are you?” his mother reproachfully asked and Nuri sighed slightly annoyed, feeling tired and exhausted all of a sudden. He didn't know how oftentimes he had had such conversations with his mother before and all he wished was that she would finally give up their tries to press him into a form he didn't fit in, at all.

“I told you yesterday that I would spend the day and the night with a schoolmate, mom. We are learning English and we will watch some movies later.” The first part hadn't been a lie, because they had learned English until now and Nuri was determined to let Erik speak English the entire evening, about the second part – watching a movie – he wasn't that sure, but, he really couldn't tell his mom that he wanted to teach Erik some other things apart from English, as well, and he had no bad conscience at all about his little white lie.

“I thought that you were speaking about another Friday. Your father invited some important guests, Nuri. I expect you to come home for dinner!” his mother ordered in a whiny voice and Nuri could feel the well-known knot forming in his stomach.

“No, mom, I won't. I promised Erik to visit him and stay with him and I told you that I would stay away overnight before dad invited some 'important guests'. Let me guess, he also invited some 'nice' young women I'm supposed to consider as possible 'appropriate wives', right? I told both of you to stop that! I'm of age and I won't let you mess with _my_ life, mom!” Nuri had tried to keep his voice calm and friendly, but, at the end of the sentence, his annoyance was clear to detect and he drew in a few shaky breaths to keep himself from shouting.

“Nuri, don't talk to me like this!” she cried and Nuri bit his lip so hard that he could taste blood upon it.

“We had this conversation before, and I told you that I wouldn't let you find a wife for me, mom. I told it to dad and I told it to you. I will return to Dortmund, instantly if you won't accept that _now!_ I agreed to come to Munich and study computer science and business economics to work for Sahin enterprises later, but, I won't let you rule my private life and choose the one I have to live with!”

His mother made a small noise that sounded suspiciously like a sob, but, Nuri wasn't in the mood to let her manipulating him again, not this time. Not, when Erik was waiting for him and when they had the chance to spend the night together, alone and undisturbed. Not, when his wonderful and sweet boyfriend seemed to be as eager to explore the pleasures of sweet lovemaking as he was himself. Nuri had enjoyed such pleasures before, but never with someone he loved so much like he loved Erik and he wouldn't let his parents control his life again.

“Nuri, please, he will be angry and your cousin will be disappointed and...” his mother begged and Nuri suppressed his annoyed growl only with effort. He had known it. His parents wanted to marry him with his cousin who was a nice sweet girl, but not the one he wanted to spend his life with. He loved her like a sister and he knew that she didn't love him the way a wife should love her husband, either.

“No, mom. I will be back tomorrow around noon. I have to hang up now, by!” he pressed the button that would disconnect the call before his mother could say another word again and tossed it to the side, angrily. He closed his eyes and inhaled and exhaled slowly and carefully, loosening his clenched fists he had balled during the talk.

When he heard a sound coming from the door, his eyes flew open again and when he saw Erik standing in the doorway, staring at him with wide, frightened eyes and biting his lip, he felt a thick lump in his throat.

Erik swallowed several times, before he managed to croak out: “Do you have to leave?” he asked, his voice trembling at the edge to crying. He was clearly frightened that Nuri would leave him, but, he hadn't forgotten that the black-haired elder teenager had ordered him to speak English the whole day and Nuri was deeply touched that he still thought of it even though he was that concerned about their day together.

Nuri smiled reassuringly at him and reached out with his hand. Erik had changed into a new jeans and his hair was still damp from the shower he had taken. His wonderful boyfriend had rosy cheeks and was such a beautiful sight that it almost hurt to look at him.

“Come here, sweetheart,” he said gently and after a tiny moment of hesitation, Erik rushed to him, sitting down on his lap again. “No, Erik, I won't leave you. There's nothing that could keep me from spending this wonderful day and the night with you,” he affirmed him in his most tender voice and Erik relaxed and let out a relieved sigh.

“You won't go?” he made sure once more, his voice muffled by Nuri's neck. “No, I won't go, my sweet Erik. I love you and I want to spend the night with you,” he whispered, his lips ghosting tenderly over the soft brown hair and the warm and fragrant skin of his rosy cheek.

“I love you, too,” Erik confessed happily and Nuri pulled him close, his desire for the sweet young man overwhelming him again. He searched for his lips and kissed him passionately, showing the younger one how much he loved and desired him. “How about we move this to your room?” he murmured, nibbling at his smooth bottom lip. Nuri had a lot of patience and wouldn't do anything Erik didn't want him to do, but, if he wouldn't find some kind of release sooner rather than later, he would go crazy with need, he knew that for sure.

Erik nodded eagerly, rising to his feet and pulling the elder one up with him. “Yes, I want to feel you,” he admitted, the rosiness deepening and for one moment, Nuri wished that time would stand still forever so that he would forever stay here with him, being able to just watch his sweet boyfriend standing there in all his beauty, smiling shyly at him. But, when Erik pulled at his hand, breaking the spell, he hurried to follow him to his bedroom, pretty sure that he would like even more what was awaiting him there.

 

\-----------------------------------------------------------

 

Erik lay in his bed, his arms full of the most wonderful young man in the whole wide world, kissing him with all he had. His hands slipped under the white shirt, curiously and rapturously exploring the strong-muscled back underneath the smooth skin, while Nuri's lips traveled over his face, dabbing sweet kisses all over it, his nose, his forehead, his eyelids, his chin and his cheeks, murmuring sweet words of love and devotion between the kisses.

Nuri's hands roamed over his body, finding the spots where Erik reacted best to his caresses easily and when he raised his head to look at him, his face flushed with his desire and his eyes dark with his arousal, Erik hardened again, instantly, just from the sight of Nuri wanting him that obviously.

“Would it be okay with you if we took these off?” Nuri asked, tugging at Erik's t-shirt, his voice husky and rough. Erik nodded his head, vigorously. “Yes!” Nuri snickered because of Erik's eagerness, slowly pulling the shirt over Erik's head. Erik lifted his arms to make it easier for him and then, he watched Nuri ripping his own shirt from his body hastily, almost destroying it as he did so. Erik stared with fascination at his naked chest, the golden skin with the soft dark fur covering it and he reached out without thinking, letting his fingers glide over the chiseled lines and of the perfectly toned torso, enjoying the sensation of the fur tickling his sensitive palm as his hand wandered down to Nuri's abdomen. Nuri watched him exploring his body with hungry eyes, reminding Erik of a black panther, his breathing ragged and heavy and Erik could hardly believe that it was him arousing his beloved Nuri that much.

He could feel the proof of the black-haired one's strong desire pressing against his hipbone and his own cock twitched helplessly underneath his jeans, complaining about the tight prison that kept it from stretching itself into the air, wanting nothing more than to be liberated from the offending garment and get the attention it craved for so badly.

“Can we take these off, too?” he whispered sheepishly, pulling at their trousers and Nuri bent down, rewarding his courage with another ardent kiss. “Are you sure that you're ready for it, my sweetheart?” he asked tenderly and Erik nodded again. He longed to touch Nuri at his most secret places and he longed to be touched where no one else had ever touched him before and he wanted it to happen right now, during their first so special and wonderful night.

“Yes, please!” he begged and Nuri's hungry lips made him moan and gasp out as he silenced his begging with his mouth. He opened Erik's jeans one-handed and Erik wriggled underneath him when he pulled the tight jeans over his legs. For a while, they struggled to undress the rest of their clothes without pausing in their caresses and kisses, but then, they were finally naked, their bodies touching in full length for the first time. Erik shivered as he felt Nuri's heated flesh against his own, his hard cock, straining against Erik's thigh and his own hard dick pressed happily against Nuri's groin.

Erik moaned with the sensation and Nuri answered with a similar needy sound, covering Erik with his body, his tongue slipping into the sweet cavern of Erik's mouth, inviting his tongue to dance the old courtship dance with him. Erik's hands traveled down to Nuri's backside, kneading his perfectly rounded cheeks as he answered to the kiss and the elder and much more experienced young man shivered and quivered above him, moaning and gasping. “Erik, my sweet Erik, I want you so!” he confessed, whimpering with need and arousal. “I want you, too, Nuri!” Erik whispered, shuddering with pleasure, because Nuri's clever hands caressing his thigh and his flanks made him much harder than he had been before if this was even possible.

He couldn't resist any longer, his hand wandering from Nuri's butt to his groin and Nuri shivered again, shifting his weight to make it easy for Erik to touch him where he needed to be touched so badly. “Yes, oh Erik, yes, please, please, Erik!” he encouraged him breathlessly, his voice shaky and trembling and a hot wave of tenderness and love swept over Erik as he witnessed Nuri's uncertainty and his longing. Erik had thought that Nuri would always be self-confident and sure about what he wanted and what he was doing and to see that he was as nervous and unsure as he was himself made him feel less uncertain and helpless.

And then, he touched another male's hard cock for the first time. It felt totally different from touching his own hard dick and yet, it felt familiar and so perfectly right.

Erik closed his eyes, focusing only on touching and caressing Nuri's impressive manhood, seeking his touch, twitching happily and straining into the soft caress of Erik's tender hand. Nuri shuddered violently as the brunette moved with slow, exploratory strokes up and down on his aching arousal.

“Yes, just like that, oh, sweetheart, please,” Nuri pleaded desperately and a new wave of wanting and ardor washed over Erik, leaving him tingling and dizzy with lust. But, when Nuri tried to return the favor, he shook his head. “No, Nuri, you first!” he whispered. He wanted to enjoy only Nuri and his pleasure and if Nuri caressed him, he wouldn't be able to do that properly becoming far too distracted by his own lust. He wanted to make his astonishing boyfriend happier than he had ever been before and judging by the moans, shivers and needy sounds he pulled from the elder one, he did a good job with that.

Erik wrapped his hand more firmly around the throbbing length, wet with the pre-come their kisses and Nuri's desire had milked from him and he pulled Nuri's head down with his other hand to kiss him. This time, it was his turn to take control of the kiss, the black-haired teenager was far too caught up in his lust to be able to do anything else than just enjoy Erik's rapturous ministration.

Erik moved up and down on the hard shaft, dwelling in the feeling of velvet-smooth skin over rock-hard steel, concentrating on Nuri's reactions. He might be inexperienced, but, he had jerked off oftentimes enough to know what would pleasure the other male most and when he felt Nuri getting harder, his cock pulsing heavily in his slick fingers, he knew that the love of his life was very close to the first orgasm Erik would gift him with. Erik deepened the kiss, hoping that he would be the one to let Nuri come countless times in the future.

He needed only few more strokes and then, Nuri went rigid, crying out in their kiss as he came, spilling his hot release into the tender fingers stroking him through his climax until the younger one had milked every drop out of him and Nuri relaxed, almost crushing him as he dropped down on him, panting and gasping for air, his body now limp and sated.

“I love you, Erik,” he murmured brokenly against his sweaty shoulder after a while, and Erik embraced him tightly, his own love for his wonderful boyfriend making his eyes wet and his throat tight.

“I love you, too, Nuri,” he whispered back, smiling happily, because he knew that the night was still young. Tonight, they would love each other and forget the world outside, because this night was truly a very special magical and wonderful winter night.


	21. Happy Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erik and Nuri savor their night to the fullest and Marco has to learn that playing football is a real job...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today is the first anniversary of me joining AO3 and I want to celebrate this with you and with a new chapter including all of my beloved four boys. Thank you so much for more than 8000 hits, more than 300 kudos and your incredible and awesome support!  
> You're so great my dear readers, please, enjoy the new chapter and as always, please, let me know if you liked it! :-)

Nuri lay snuggled close to his sweet boyfriend, feeling astonished and happily. To tell the truth, he couldn't remember one single time he had been as happy as he was right now.

Erik loved him just for what he was, Nuri, a young man with the same dreams and hopes as other teenagers had and he didn't want him to be anybody else just like his family wanted him to be.

When he was able to raise his head and look at the younger one, Erik smiled at him with so much love that he had to swallow against the sudden lump in his throat.

“Did I pleasure you?” Erik asked shyly and Nuri gently stroked his face in awe and wonder. “Oh yes, you did, my sweet Erik. It were the most wonderful feelings I have ever felt,” he assured him tenderly, his hand traveling down on Erik's body, caressing the smooth skin until he reached Erik's belly. He circled the cute navel playfully and began to paint letters on Erik's abdomen.

Erik giggled at first, but then, he closed his eyes, focusing on the letters Nuri wrote on his belly.

“I l-love y-you,” he read and Nuri was proud of him because he had written his declaration in English and Erik slowly seemed to get used to this language he had had so many problems with.

“You're doing fine, sweetheart,” he whispered into the teenager's ear, kissing his earlobe. “Will you promise me that you will speak English during the weekend, with your brother, too? Then, you will be able to pass the test at Monday easily.”

Erik moaned softly, nodding his head. “Yes, I promise you, Nuri,” he said hoarsely and Nuri rewarded him with another passionate kiss. He had experienced the best orgasm he had ever had only a few minutes before, but he felt new arousal making him hard again, because Erik's hard cock pressing against his thigh and his silent moans and gasps were as addicting as the strongest drug and his body reacted forcefully to the unmistakable signs of Erik's unfulfilled desire.

His hand stroked its way from Erik's abdomen to his legs, kneading his thigh until Erik shivered with need. “Nuri, please, I need...” he begged longingly and Nuri kissed his eyelids, murmuring a reassuring “I know, sweetheart. I'll give you what you need, I promise you!”

Erik sighed, wrapping his arms around the black-haired teenager, initiating the next passionate kiss and Nuri let him take the lead and have his way with him. Erik's tongue slipped into his mouth, exploring it curiously and with much more self-confidence than he had showed before. Nuri responded to the kiss, careful not to take control of it while he busied his hand with stroking Erik's groin until he finally reached the one part of the brunette's body he longed so much to touch.

Erik was perfect. He was long and thick, with soft skin over hard steel and Nuri let his fingers glide along the with fragrant milky wetness slippery shaft, up and down, up and down until Erik's fingers dug into his shoulders and he pulled away from Nuri's swollen lips to cry out with lust and pleasure.

“Oh, Nuri, Nuri, please!” he whimpered and Nuri soothed him with gentle kisses on his face while he closed his hand more firmly around Erik's throbbing dick, watching him closely to see what would pleasure his wonderful boyfriend the most. He changed the angle and the pressure until Erik shivered violently and then, began to jerk him off in earnest, wanting nothing more than to return the favor and enjoy Erik's lust and pleasure once more. Erik let go of his neck with one hand, snaking it between their bodies to do the same and stroke Nuri's once more rock-hard cock in the same rhythm Nuri pleasure him. With his other hand, he pulled at the black hair until Nuri bent down and kissed him, passionately and lovingly. His tongue took control of their kiss this time, dancing around the brunette's soft tongue, teasing it with short licks and strokes while he slowly drove him to the very edge of his control with his clever hand knowing exactly how to massage the throbbing hard length slick with the pleasure Nuri's skillful caresses milked from him. Nuri kissed him until he felt Erik tense with his approaching orgasm and then, he glided down on his sweaty body and enclosed Erik's aching dick with tender lips. Erik cried out startled and aroused and Nuri could feel that he tried to hold back, not sure if he was allowed to come in Nuri's mouth.

Nuri though hadn't taken him in his mouth just to back away again and he wrapped his hand around the base of Erik's impressive member and hollowed his cheeks, sucking forcefully and swirling his tongue around the leaking tip like a whirlwind while he stroked his sensitive perineum with two fingers of his other hand.

His sweet Erik got rigid, losing the last shreds of his self-control instantly. He had never had sex with anybody else before and the double onslaught of his senses together with the fact that his dick was buried deep inside Nuri's hot and wet mouth for the very first time in his life becoming too much for him. “Nuri!” his helpless scream was the sweetest music Nuri had ever listened to and the next second, Erik was shooting his overwhelming pleasure deep down his throat, arching unconsciously his back. To his luck, Nuri had expected this from the brunette and moved with Erik's jerking hips, swallowing the salty release filling his mouth again and again.

Erik moaned and shuddered, gasped and trembled and Nuri sucked and licked in a haze until he had tasted every single drop of the brunette's ecstasy and his wonderful boyfriend lay limp and panting on the mattress, catching his breath. Nuri covered him with his body, trapping his with the need to come pulsing manhood between Erik's sweaty thighs and then, moved his hips until his loud strangled cry and the warm wetness between Erik's legs proved to the younger one that Nuri had found his release, as well.

Nuri embraced Erik tightly, not caring about the sticky wetness dripping onto the mattress, and Erik didn't seem to care about it, either, because he wrapped his arms around the elder one with the same force and made sweet, sated little noises sounding like the purr of a content cat.

“I love you, Erik,” Nuri whispered and he could feel Erik's lips curl into a happy smile at his throat as the love of his life whispered back: “I love you, too, Nuri.”

Nuri relaxed gratefully, closing his eyes. Tomorrow, he would tell it to Erik who he really was, but, this magical night was only meant for sharing their love and nothing else. Hopefully, this night would last long and tomorrow wouldn't come too soon.

  


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Marco could tell that Mario was in a foul mood the minute the young footballer emerged on the stairs leading to the floor where his flat was.

The previous day, he actually had endured watching the 'Sportschau' to know how the match had ended, because Mario hadn't been able to call him, neither after the game, nor the following Saturday until it had been really late, and Marco really had wanted to know what was going on. When Mario finally had called him, he had been whining and growling about their lost match the entire time not willing to talk about anything else.

Marco's patience had been tried sorely, because the blonde teacher hadn't been able to understand Mario's lamentations, at all. Bayern München made its lonely circles on top of the First Bundesliga and there was no way that Mario's club would be dethroned just because of one lost match.

Mario of course, had sensed his lack of understanding and had become pretty snappy and upset, because he had thought that his beloved teacher would console him and rant about Wolfsburg, the referees and the injustice of the whole match in general. Which Marco hadn't done, because, after watching the 'Sportschau', he had had to agree with the commentator that Wolfsburg had played a great game and Bayern had deserved it to lose.

He had been too clever to say it out loud, but, Mario was sensitive enough to realize what he really thought and finally had hung up, offended and angrily and he had refused to pick it up again when Marco had called him back.

After their quarrel, Marco had gone to bed, angry and offended himself and when his best friend Marcel had showed up this morning, he had used the opportunity to rant about footballers who considered their stupid game as the most important thing in the world.

Marcel had leaned against his refrigerator, considering him with a frown.

  


\---------------------------------------------------------------------  


  


_“For having such an high IQ, you're acting pretty dense sometimes, Marco,” his best friend said, shaking his head in disbelief._

_“Why? It's only football! Nothing truly important!” Marco snapped back, hurt that his best friend sided with Mario instead of him._

_Marcel shook his head again. “Marco. You're in love with a footballer. Of course, he considers his job as important as you consider your own as a teacher, and losing a match is the same for him as complaining parents would be for you. Or maybe a class having only bad grades in your tests. He earns his money with playing football. And he is damn good, if I'm allowed to say that. He has a lot to lose if the second half of the season turns out to become for München what the first half of the season was for Dortmund. Mario is young and hungry for titles and wins. He needs them for his career. You can be a teacher until you're old and gray. He can play football only for a couple of years. You told me that he cares a lot about his little brother, that he takes care of him for months when their parents aren't there and that he is interested in what you're doing and talking about Shakespeare with you. And when he truly needs you, after a match that had turned out to be horrible for him, all you have to say is that it is nothing important? Marco, I'm truly disappointed.”_

_Marco stared at him with his mouth hanging open and then, he wanted to smack himself._

_“You're right, Marcel. Oh my God, I'm the worst boyfriend walking on Earth!” He rushed out of the room, hurrying to grab his phone and type a long message to his beloved Mario, asking him to come over in the evening and saying sorry for his stupidity at least tenth times._

_Marcel patted his shoulder and left with a content nod of his head and after two hours that had felt like two weeks, Mario typed back: 'Will be there around eight.'_

  


\--------------------------------------------------------------  


  


And now, Marco stood in his doorway, watching Mario climb the stairs with a defeated and hurt expression on his face.

Marco swallowed hard, loathing himself for his behavior. The second Mario had climbed the last stair, Marco pulled him into his flat, closing the door with his foot and embracing his boyfriend tightly.

“I'm sorry, Mario. I'm so so sorry!” he whispered again and again, rocking Mario gently. First, Mario was stiff and tense, but, after repeating his words like a mantra and stroking his back, the younger one finally relaxed, melting against Marco's solid frame and hesitantly wrapping his arms around the blonde.

“I'm so sorry for being an asshole instead of the caring and understanding boyfriend I should have been. Please, I want to make up for my arrogant and heartless behavior,” Marco murmured, tousling Mario's short hair.

Mario sighed, embracing Marco so tight as if he wanted to crawl into him. “You don't have to. You're right. Football is not as important as other things,” he mumbled into Marco's sweater.

“I'm _not_ right. Playing football is your job and what you love most in this world. For you, it is a big deal and therefore, it will be a big deal for me in the future, as well,” Marco affirmed him, flinching startled as Mario angrily pushed him away all of a sudden. He swallowed, not sure what he had done wrong this time, looking at Mario with pleading eyes.

Mario crossed his arms before his chest, glaring at the blonde. “Football is not what I love most in the world. I love you more. You and Erik,” he added silently.

Marco couldn't help but laugh with relief and happiness, pulling his pouting boyfriend close again. “Of course, how stupid from me. But, football is the third most important thing for you and I will take it seriously in the future, I promise you. I watched the 'Sportschau' yesterday,” he admitted sheepishly and now, it was Mario's turn to chuckle. He tugged at the collar of Marco's sweater, crushing their lips together.

When they parted again, both of them panting for air, Mario smiled at his beloved teacher. “I'm proud of you, my sweet Romeo. You were pretty brave watching the 'Sportschau' all by yourself,” he praised him with barely hidden amusement and Marco stuck his tongue out. “I knew that you would mock me for that!” he growled, but, he wasn't really angry.

Mario became serious, stroking Marco's face. “I'm not mocking you, Marco. You don't know how much it means to me that you do this for me. Maybe, you would come to our home matches, as well sometimes?”

Marco bit his lip. “I would like to, Mario. But, to be honest, I don't have the money for the tickets and I don't want you to buy them for me,” he admitted reluctantly.

Mario didn't seem to worry about this, he only beamed at the blonde. “You can use my parent's tickets. I always have a bad feeling when Erik is alone in the stadium and it would take a weight from my shoulders if there was a level-headed grown up taking care of him,” he suggested and when Marco looked into his begging eyes, he knew that he had lost the battle.

“Alright, I will gladly accept your offer, my sweet Julian. But, I won't wear a scarf!” he warned him and Mario chuckled again. “That's fine with me. You don't have to. If you will only be there, whooping us.”

Marco kissed him, nibbling hungrily at his lips. “This surely can be arranged,” he murmured and then, passion exploded between them. “God, I want you!” he groaned, but, Mario was already way ahead of him, heading in the direction of Marco's bedroom and pulling the blonde with him.

Marco followed him with a huge grin on his face. This evening would be perfect, he knew that for sure.

  


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Marco had been right with his suspicion. The evening was perfect. They sat on the bed, Mario in his lap, making slow movements as he impaled himself on Marco's rock-hard shaft again and again.

Marco had been surprised when Mario shyly had asked him to take him, his fear that he wouldn't be able to enjoy the bottoming as much as he enjoyed the topping obviously completely gone. Marco had kissed him for his braveness and taken his time preparing his sweet Julian with tender and clever fingers until Mario had moaned and trembled with need and ardor.

Marco had sat up and pulled him in his lap then and Mario had obeyed, his secret core taking in Marco's full length eagerly and without any restraint.

Marco nibbled at his throat and his chest, murmuring words of love and longing against Mario's heated skin, kneading his wonderful butt while Mario moved up and down, moaning softly into Marco's ear. Marco bucked his hips up in time to Mario's movements, licking his way up to Mario's tempting mouth, claiming it as his own with his lips, his teeth and his tongue. Mario shifted his angle so Marco's hard spear would brush over his sweet spot with every thrust and when Marco snaked his hand between their connected bodies, wrapping his fingers around Mario's throbbing cock, he cried out into their kiss. “Marco, this is so good! I'm close!” he croaked out and Marco laughed breathlessly.

“Yes, my wonderful Mario, come for me, baby,” he encouraged the brunette to let go and savor his pleasure to the fullest. Mario began to tremble, poised at the edge of an incredible orgasm and when Marco brushed with his thumb over the leaking head of his erection, the young footballer stumbled over the edge, spilling his seed into Marco's hand and all over their bellies. Marco watched his face, suffused with his passion and lust and when he was sure that Mario's satisfaction would be as forceful and pleasurable as it only could be, he let go himself and followed his beloved one to the height of complete ecstasy. He shuddered through his release, filling the rubber with his release again and again until he had nothing more to give.

Mario went lax, leaning heavily against him and Marco laid his head on his shoulder, dwelling in the feeling of their closeness and their love.

“I love you, Marco, more than anything else,” the footballer whispered happily and Marco pressed him close, kissing his cheek. “I love you, too, Mario. More than I ever loved someone,” he answered tenderly.

Marcel had been right. He had been stupid and dense when he had thought that Mario's job wasn't a 'real' job. In the future, he would take his problems serious and be the best boyfriend Mario could wish for, even if this meant that he had to become a football-fan, because, making his beloved Mario happy was worth everything, even watching football.


	22. Meet Me On TV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erik is happy with Nuri and Marco is happy with Mario. But, life can be tricky sometimes and Marco learns that Mario's appearance in a talk show on TV might affect not only Mario's life, but Nuri's, Erik's and his own life, as well...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go on with the plot! Yesterday, I watched a part of a talk show on TV about the championship in Qatar and I couldn't resist to pick up the idea and create my own 'talk show' with two special guests. I borrowed the chief editor of the sports magazine 'Kicker' for that and one of the anchorwomen from the Bayern channel. It is all fiction of course, and this talk show never happened in real life.  
> As always a million thanks to you my wonderful audience for your awesome support, please go on with it!  
> Enjoy the new chapter and please, let me know if you liked it!

Erik handed his test back to Mr. Reus with a shy smile before he quickly left the room in silence. The teenager made his way to the schoolyard, lost in his thoughts, craving for some fresh air. He wrapped his jacket firmly around himself because the cold was still biting his skin, but, his urge to get some fresh air in his lungs was much stronger than his wish to stay in the warm building and join his classmates in the auditorium.

Normally, he was one of the last pupils handing his test back to the teachers, but, to his astonishment, Nuri's lessons had worked quite perfectly. Erik had kept his promise and spoken only English the rest of weekend, even with Mario after his return from Wolfsburg on Saturday evening. Mario had stared at him with his mouth hanging open when Erik had greeted him in English before he had been able to hug him and praise his fluent spoken sentences – in German. Erik had told him off and ordered him to use the English language, as well, and they had had a lot of fun during the evening, laughing tears about some funny mistakes both of them had made.

They had ordered pizza and watched Star Wars in English with subtitles and to his joy, Erik had been able to follow the film without having to read the subtitles too often. Of course, he had watched the film several times before and this had made it easier for him, but still...

His joy though had turned into concern because Mario had been in a bad mood the next morning, pushing his breakfast from one side of the plate to the other without eating and looking as if he wanted to cry. Erik had been deeply worried and guessed that he had fought with Mr. Reus about something; and a large rock had fallen from his shoulders as Mario's mood had changed a little bit after he had read a message on his smartphone. Erik had wished to tell his beloved brother that he knew about his relationship with his teacher but had been to unsure to do it. Maybe, there would be a better chance of telling him during the next days.

His thoughts snapped back into reality as his friend Matze joined him on the schoolyard, his teeth chattering loudly as he stepped from foot to foot to keep himself warm.

“Wow, Erik, you were writing a lot, what happened that made you become fond of English within only a couple of days?” Matze asked with apparent curiousity and Erik blushed furiously, his eyes watching the grayish wall of the building as if he had never seen anything more beautiful before.

“Erik?!” Matze inquired more urgently when his friend didn't answer, stepping closer to his best friend. “It has something to do with our new pupil, right? He surely was also the reason why you didn't want to stay with me during Mario's absence! Talk to me, I'm your best friend, remember?”

Erik shot him an embarrassed and annoyed look before he stared at the gray wall again. “Yeah, I remember something else quite well, too, Matze,” he accused him.

Matze only grinned, shrugging his shoulders. “It worked, right? And you have gotten your revenge right after wards. Marie almost fainted by the thought of having to learn English with me,” he answered, sounding reproachfully and a little bit hurt.

Erik forced his eyes away from the wall back to his best friend, even though he was still red all over his face. “You like her,” he realized, stunned and feeling guilty all of a sudden because he hadn't noticed his best friend's crush earlier.

Matze shrugged again. “She's very pretty. I know that she can be arrogant and unpleasant, but, she also can be nice sometimes,” he said and now it was his turn to stare at his shoes as if he had found something fascinating there.

Erik sighed, laying his hand upon Matze's arm. “I'm sorry, Matze, I didn't have any clue. You're right. Marie is pretty and she also can be nice if she wants to be. And yes, Nuri taught me English. He stayed with me from Friday to Saturday and he made me speak only English the entire weekend, even when he was gone. Mario and I talked only in English until this morning.”

Matze considered him thoughtfully. “Uh, he stayed the night with you! That might be the reason for your rosy cheeks and your shining eyes, then? It suits you, Erik. You looked so unhappy and pale during the last months,” he said warmly, embracing the brunette briefly.

Erik smiled gratefully at him. “He says he loves me,” he whispered and Matze smiled. “Of course, he does, silly. Everyone who makes the effort of getting to know the real you loves you. You're a wonderful person.”

Erik blushed again, he wasn't used to be praised that way but, he could see in his friend's eyes that Matze had meant what he had said. “Thank you, Matze,” he mumbled sheepishly.

Matze cautiously looked around to see if someone was watching them or listening to their conversation. “Do you want to tell me why you stay away from him at school?” he asked quietly and Erik sighed again.

“He told me about his parents and his father's company. For me, he is just Nuri and I don't care about his money, his background or anything else, Matze. But, I can understand his problems because I have had such problems so oftentimes because of Mario's fame myself. I'm not ashamed of my feelings for him and I know that he isn't ashamed, either, but, it will be better if we behave in public as if we were only friends and classmates, Matze. I don't want to make his life more difficult as it already is. So please, don't tell it to anybody.”

Matze wrapped his arm around Erik's shoulder. “Of course not, Erik. I would never betray you like that. I'm happy for you and your secret is safe with me.”

Erik smiled gratefully at him, glad that he had found a friend like him. Matze was a true friend and Erik knew that he liked him and not the fact that he was Mario's brother – just like Nuri loved him and not 'Mario's little stepbrother'.

The gong announced the end of the class and it didn't take long until a continuous flow of other pupils gushed into the schoolyard, chattering and screaming. Erik's eyes searched for the well-known figure of his beloved boyfriend and when he saw Nuri emerging on the doorway, he smiled happily at him. Nuri's eyes locked with his own and they shared a short moment of silent understanding and love before Nuri was swept away with the flow, disappearing somewhere into the crowd.

They would see each other after school again and Erik was eager to tell him about his test and how easy it had been for him this time to write the summary of the chapters of 'Romeo and Juliet' they had had to write. And maybe, they would also spend some time with other pleasurable things again.  
Erik smiled. He truly was the luckiest guy on Earth with Nuri being his boyfriend. Nobody else could be luckier than him, he was sure about that.

 

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Marco thought much the same as Erik had done a few hours ago while he sat at his desk, correcting the tests of his pupils. The previous evening had turned out to be very pleasurable and passionately and Marco was sure that he had been able to make up for his stupid behavior with the younger one.

Mario had left him only reluctantly, kissing him goodbye again and again until he finally had turned around and headed down the stairs. Marco had watched him disappearing and closed the door, fighting with the strong urge to run after him and beg him to stay the night.  
He had known that Mario didn't want to leave Erik alone again and both of them had to get up early and so he had balled his fists and gone straight to bed, pushing his nose into the pillow where Mario's head had rested only minutes before, inhaling deeply his beloved scent until he finally had fallen asleep.

He sipped from his coffee and turned the page of Nuri's test. Nuri's summary impressed the hell out of him, if he hadn't known before that the teenager's IQ was as high as his own and that he had lived several years in London, then, he would have suspected something like that after reading his test. Marco shook his head with amazement and disbelief, placing a big fat '15' underneath the summary and leaving a short praise there, too. He laid the test to the side, musing about which test he should correct after this astonishing work, before he finally began to flip through the pile of papers searching for Erik's test. He just had found it when his phone began to ring.

He looked at the caller ID and his heart missed a beat as he saw Mario's number. He picked it up and said happily: “Hello?”

“Hey, Romeo!” Mario's voice sounded annoyed and Marco swallowed, his hands becoming sweaty.

“What's wrong, Mario?” he asked concerned.

Mario sighed theatrically. “I'm so sorry, Marco. I won't make it tonight. They ordered me to join a TV-show tonight all of a sudden. The Bayern television channel asked the club if one of the players could come for a talk show they want to show live on TV. It is because of the debate if the World championship in Qatar should take place during the winter months. They agreed and told me that I will be the 'lucky one' only one hour ago. I'm so sorry!” Mario whined and Marco swallowed his disappointment to console his angry boyfriend.

“It's okay, Mario. I know that you can't do anything against it. I understand that. In Bayern? I will watch you on TV then,” he assured him gently and Mario sighed again.

“Thank you, Marco. I will do my very best to not disappoint you,” he murmured and Marco could hear that there was something else bothering the footballer.

“What's wrong, Mario? You did this before, right? It's not the first time that you will be sitting in a talk show.”

“No, but, they also invited Nuri's father, Mr. Sahin. You know what he thinks about sportsmen. He will be on that talk show, as well.”

 

\--------------------------------------------------

 

A couple of hours later, Marco carried the tray with the beer and the chips into his living room while Marcel was searching for the right channel on TV.

After consoling his desperate boyfriend and trying to calm himself down, he had called his best friend Marcel who had agreed to come over and watch the talk show with him instantly after Marco had explained the situation to him. Of course, he hadn't told him about Nuri's relationship with Erik, only that Mr. Sahin was one of the sponsors of the club and that Nuri was his pupil.

Marcel looked up, smiling at him. “Calm down, Marco. It's not you sitting in bright light and talking about 'stupid football'!” he teased his friend.

Marco placed the tray on the table, glaring at the smaller one. “I have learned my lesson, Marcel. Football now is as important for me as it is for Mario!” he snapped, but, Marcel only snickered, unimpressed. “I'll have to teach you some lessons about the rules then, so you won't embarrass yourself and him when you're in the stadium, whooping your boyfriend,” he stated dryly.

Marco sat down beside him with a growl, fidgeting around on the couch nervously. Marcel shot him a knowing look. “Stop that, Marco. I'm sure that your beloved Mario will be doing fine. You will only spill your beer if you don't stop your nervous seesawing.”

Marco didn't respond because the talk-show began at the same moment and he stared at the screen, the hand holding the bottle with the beer trembling slightly. Mario entered the auditorium first, followed by the chief editor Klaus Smentek from the sports magazine 'Kicker', Mr. Sahin and another man Marco didn't know and who was introduced by the anchorwoman Susanne Franke as the sports physician Mr. Meyers.

Marco began to fidget again, his eyes glued to the screen as he drank in the sight of his beloved 'Julian' who looked truly handsome and attractive in his tailor-made dark-gray suit with the white dress shirt underneath. Mario had chosen a burgundy-red tie to his suit and Marco's cock twitched happily and very interested as its owner's eyes followed every movement of the famous young footballer he called his boyfriend.

“Wow, Marco, you really made a good catch!” Marcel interrupted his rapturous staring and he frowned and flinched startled, shooting the other one an angry look. “Be quiet!” he growled, turning his attention back to the happenings on the screen again, ignoring Marcel's chuckling that sounded suspiciously like the content bleating of a goat.

The guests had sat down on large and comfortable armchairs, and Marco could see that Mario's shoulders were tense and that he tried to make a good impression by sitting straight and with his legs closed. Mr. Smentek and the physician looked much more relaxed and Mr. Sahin had adopted the pose of the successful and self-confident businessman he actually was.

Mrs. Franke opened the debate with a general explanation of the difficulties of placing such an exhausting sports-event like the World championship in the hottest months in a land that consisted almost only of a desert on the one hand and the problems with letting this event that had gone down during the months June and July for decades take place during the month December when half of the world was preparing for celebrating Christmas.

Mr. Smentek and the physician spoke first, explaining the problems of the logistic and the things that happened behind the matches in the stadiums unnoticed from the audience in front of the TV-screen and the ones sitting in the stadiums and the physical exertions not only for the players, but also for the other workers and the audience of course. Marco could see that Mario listened carefully to what both men said, nodding from time to time in agreement, especially as the Dr. Meyers counted the various risks for the players like heat stroke, dehydration and even heart attacks.

Mr. Sahin however only snorted, unimpressed.

“I don't think that most of the players care about such things, Mr. Meyers,” he interrupted Mr. Meyer's speech rather impolitely. “They are to dense to even understand those risks. They don't care about anything but the fame that goes with this 'event' and the chance to step onto the podium and lift the trophy up into the air, as little as this chance might be! A lot of these 'famous' players might even not be capable of reading and writing properly,” he added with a quick sidelong glance at Mario.

Marco stared at the screen with his mouth hanging open and balled fists, deep red in his face with his fury about Mr. Sahin's impudent words.

The cameras swiveled to the audience in the auditorium that had went silent, holding their breath and looking in only one direction – at the chair where Mario was sitting.

Marco hadn't realized that he had held his breath, too, until he became dizzy with the lack of air in his lungs. He drew in a shaky breath, listening to Mario's words anxiously as the young footballer began to speak.

“With all due respect, Mr. Sahin, but, I have to tell you that you are not right. Us footballers know exactly which risks we have to expect by playing the championship during the hottest months in a country with an average temperature of about 40 degrees in Celsius or 104 degrees in Fahrenheit.”  
The brunette smiled as he noticed Sahin's astonished look about his knowledge of the measuring unit Fahrenheit.

“We know that playing football under such circumstances can even threaten and endanger our lives and we take these risks seriously, I can assure you that,” he then continued. “We also know that it will be as hard for all of the other workers and the audience, as well. Most of us therefore would prefer to let the championship take place during the colder winter, even though it means that it will interfere with Christmas then. Which will be a problem, too, because we all have a family and Christmas is one of the rare times in a footballer's life when they actually can spend their time with their families.”

Marco's heart had begun to race and he pressed his hand against his mouth to keep himself from shouting with joy because of Mario's wonderful speech. The audience seemed to agree with him, as well, because they began to applaud loudly, and Mr. Smentek and Mr. Meyers smiled at the young man approvingly.

Mr. Sahin narrowed his eyes, obviously annoyed that a young man – a stupid footballer – had dared to disagree with him and this in public in a live show on TV.

“Oh yes, the very hard life of a footballer!” he groused mockingly. “Football is nothing truly important to make the world go round. I fail to see how you footballers can even consider your playing around as a real job! You earn millions with playing football while others are working hard eight hours and more every day, go to school for a good graduation or study at an university. You footballers earn your money almost during your sleep!”

Now, even Marcel who had smiled amused during the first half of the debate narrowed his eyes in annoyance. “Uh, what an impudent unpleasant bully!” he cried out and Marco could only agree with him, feeling sorry for Nuri and Erik. If Mr. Sahin ever found out about them, he would make their lives a living hell.

Mario only smiled at him and Marco wasn't sure if there was actually pity in his beloved boyfriend's eyes.

“Mr. Sahin, I don't know why you made a contract with my club if you're actually loathing everything about football. I don't know which footballers do you know, but, me and my teammates are all able to read and write properly. We all have a good graduation, I for example graduated at the technical secondary school. I'm able to talk to you in English if you want to and I know who Shakespeare is.”

For one tiny second, Mario looked straight into the camera and winked with his right eye, a brief and tender smile on his lips, before he focused on Mr. Sahin again.

“I'm also trying to have a normal life and I go to the store around the corner if I want to buy milk or bread. I pay these things in cash and not with my credit card like some other people do, because I find it ridiculous to use my card for a bill of about twenty Euros. I'm capable of mental calculation and can calculate how much the things I want to buy will cost so I can pay the shop assistant more or less appositely. You may be right that some footballers have no graduation, but, these are the ones coming from poor countries who have never gotten the chance of going to school or graduate and for them, 'playing' football is the only chance to flee from their misery and take care of their family, to afford their beloved ones a better life! I met some of these 'dense' footballers and I have to tell you that they are studying hard to make good for school and catch up on their graduation!  
And about the 'playing around': It would be my pleasure to invite you to our training sessions, Mr. Sahin. You may think that our training is like what you see when you watch children playing football on the backyard, but, I can assure you that it's not like that, at all. We are working really hard and we all know how short our lives as 'famous' footballers are. There is only a very small gap between fame and despair and between success and a life in misery because of injuries or because one's 'fame' is over and out. All we can do is trying to save as much money as possible to have something we can live from when our time is over and we have to reorganize our whole life! Apart from that, there are a lot of other people living a life similar to us footballers, crowded by paparazzi all of the time and enjoying the 'jet-set' as much as sportsmen or actors do, even a lot of businessmen...”

Mario went silent and the audience applauded again, loudly and excitedly. Mario looked the older man straight in the eyes, holding his ground and Sahin stared back, his face impassive, but, Marco could tell by the dangerous spark in the dark-brown eyes that Mario had made him an enemy.

Mr. Sahin wasn't the kind of man to not take such an offense.


	23. About Messages, Talks And Phone Calls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mario has made a statement during the talk show and now has to find out what his brother and his boyfriend think about it...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took me so long my wonderful audience, but there were some things getting in the way. Hopefully, this chapter will at least a little bit make up for it.  
> Your support is great and wonderful and all I can say is: Thank you, thank you, thank you!  
> Enjoy the new chapter and please, let me know if you liked it!  
> The explanation of the German grades are explained in the notes of chapter 7. 12 points are B+ or 2+ in German, a good grade.

From Nuri to Erik: _'Hey sweetheart! :) Did you watch the talk show with your brother? Are you fine? ☺'_

From Erik to Nuri: _'Hey! :) Yes, I did and I'm fine. How are you? Your father will be very angry, I guess? :('_

_F_ rom Nuri to Erik: _'Yes, he will. But, your brother was great! You should be proud of him! :)'_

From Erik to Nuri: _'I am. He's the best!'_

From Nuri to Erik: _' :((( !!!'_

From Erik to Nuri: _'Apart from you, of course, silly!! ☺'_

From Nuri to Erik: _'Really? :) ?'_

From Erik to Nuri: _'Do you really have to ask? I ♥ U!!'_

From Nuri to Erik: _'I ♥ U, too!!! ☺'_

From Erik to Nuri: _':) I wish you were here! I miss you!! :('_

From Nuri to Erik: _'Me too! :( Miss you more! Grr, my mom is calling. See you in school. Good night! :) ♥'_

From Erik to Nuri: _'Good night! :) ♥'_

Erik smiled and laid his smartphone to the side, snuggling closer under the woolen blanket he had wrapped around himself on the couch. He had watched the talk show and was more than proud of Mario who had put the elder man in his place that easily, but, he was also concerned about Mr. Sahin's reaction. Nuri's father wouldn't give in and admit that he had been wrong and full of prejudices, not after what Nuri had told him about his father.

In fact, the elder teenager hadn't told him that much, but, Erik had read between the lines and had gotten at least a clue about what the businessman was like. He didn't envy the black-haired young man his life and he feared that Nuri's father would do everything in his power to separate them if he ever found out about their relationship, even more after Erik's brother had been the one putting him to shame in public on a TV talk show, but he wasn't angry with Mario for what he had done, quite the opposite. Mario had not only defended himself, but every sportsman and every footballer and Erik loved him for his courage and his wonderful speech.

Erik sighed. He was tired and knew that he'd better go to bed, but, he was also determined to stay awake until his brother was at home again. He needed to tell him how proud he was of him and that everything would be fine, although he wasn't so sure about the last part. Mario never told him much about the things that happened behind the curtains in his club except for the training sessions and some funny incidents, but, Erik could imagine that the bosses wouldn't be too pleased by one of their players offending one of their sponsors.

Of course, Mr. Sahin had started the whole game by insulting Mario and every other footballer, but still. He was the one with the money and money ruled the world. That Mario was the most famous footballer in Germany, the one who had shot that goal might help him, but it could also make things worse and Erik didn't want Mario having to worry about him and his reaction, as well.

When he heard the silent sound of the front door, he jumped to his feet and rushed into the corridor, flinging his arms around his brother and pressing him close to his warm body.

Mario stumbled back against the closed door, taken aback by Erik's forceful attack, trying to keep his balance and wrapping his arms around the younger one tightly. He buried his face in the soft crook of Erik's neck and let out a shaky sigh that sounded suspiciously like a sob.

Erik gently stroked his hair, musing briefly about their suddenly reversed roles. Normally, it was Mario who had to console him, but, Erik was happy that for once, he could be the strong one, comforting and pampering his brother who had done so much for him and never asked to get anything in return.

“You were so great, Mario! I'm sooo proud of you!” he murmured soothingly into the footballer's ear and Mario made a strangled sound, something between a chuckle and another sob. “Are you really proud of me? I was afraid that you would hate me!”

Erik drew back a little, staring at his elder brother in surprise. “Hate you, Mario? For what should I hate you? This man insulted you and every other player. He is full of prejudices and arrogant and... I can't tell you how proud I was when I heard what you said to him and how you did it!”

“But, he is Nuri's father and when he'll ever find out who you are...” Mario mumbled, sounding utterly exhausted.

Erik stroked his hair. “That's okay, Mario. He will be upset, no matter whose brother I am. He will be upset because he won't accept anyone but the one girl he will 'choose' for him. I'm proud of you, don't you ever doubt that. Everyone who watched that show will be proud of you and love you for what you said and did just like I do, I know that!”

Mario relaxed gratefully, melting against his younger stepbrother. Erik stroked his back for a while, before he eventually pulled back, smiling at the young man. “Would you like to have a cup of tea? I could use some.”

Mario smiled back with a nod of his head. “You should already be in bed, but, you are right. I really could do with a cup of tea and it would be nice if you would keep me company.” He followed Erik into the kitchen, sitting down at the large table, watching the younger one boiling water and busying himself with searching for their favorite herbal tea and their preferred large mugs in the cupboard.

When the water began to bubble, Erik took the teakettle and poured the hot water into the mugs with the teabags. He sat down on the other side of the table, considering Mario thoughtfully. This would be the best opportunity to tell him that he knew about his relationship with his teacher and Erik inhaled deeply and wrapped his hands around his hot mug to warm them.

Mario stared into his mug, but, it was obvious that he didn't see the pale green steaming liquid, but something before his mind's eye.

“I'm sure that Mr. Reus will love you for your wonderful speech, as well,” he said, watching Mario's reaction closely.

“Wpppffffftthhh!” Mario who had lifted his mug to sip from the tea spilled the liquid over the table, coughing heavily. When he had caught his breath again, he stared at Erik with wide, horrified eyes.

“W-w-what di-did you say?” his brother stammered, paling within the blink of an eye until he looked white like snow, apparently scared to death.

“You heard what I said, Mario. I said that Marco Reus will love you for your wonderful speech and braveness – more than he already does, I mean.”

“How did you know?” Mario managed to croak out after three attempts to speak. Erik reached over the table to take Mario's cold hand in his own, smiling warmly at him.

“A few days ago, when you came from your secret date, you embraced me and I could smell his aftershave. He uses a special kind of aftershave and you also hm – smelled of - uh – you know...” Erik could feel himself blushing. Mario changed his color, too, turning pink and Erik was almost relieved that he didn't look as pale as he had before any more.

“I see,” he mumbled embarrassed, avoiding Erik's eyes, but, he closed his fingers around Erik's hand as if it was a life-line. “I'm sorry, Erik. We didn't mean to – it just happened...”

“You don't have to apologize, Mario. I'm happy for the both of you. I couldn't wish for a better boyfriend for you. Mr. Reus is wonderful and I'm glad that you found each other. You should call him, he surely is waiting anxiously for an opportunity to talk to you.”

Mario stroked the back of Erik's hand. “Yes, I will. I already texted him when I left the studio. Did I tell you how happy I am to have you as my little brother, Erik?” he then asked gently and Erik pressed his hand, blushing even more because of his joy.

“Yes, you did, Mario. And you show me that every day with what you do for me. I'm so happy that you are my brother, either. I will never be able to pay you back for all what you do for me all the time.”

Mario shook his hand. “You don't have to pay me back, Erik. You are my brother, my family. That's reward enough. To know that you will be by my side, no matter what.”

Erik smiled. “Always, Mario, always. I will always stand by your side. And support you and Mr. Reus unquestioningly, Mario, I promise you,” he assured his brother and for a while, they sat there in peaceful silence, drinking their tea and enjoying each other's company and it was all they both needed right now.

 

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Mario closed the door to his bedroom behind him with a relieved sigh, not bothering to turn on the lights and when he stood there in the darkness of the bedroom he slept in whenever his parents were away, the realization of what he had done nearly crashed him. His knees buckled and he stumbled to his bed, flopping down on it, his face buried in his hands.

Back then, when he had sat there in this armchair, listening to Mr. Sahin's insults, all he had wanted to do was silence him and put him in his place. The overwhelming reaction he had gotten from the audience, the frantic clapping of their hands and the shouts had told him that he had said the right words and done the right thing, even though he had been aware of the hate and anger showing briefly in Mr. Sahin's face before the impassive mask had been back in place, but now, sitting alone in his dark room, he wasn't so sure about the rightness of his behavior any more.

He had endangered everything that was important and mattered to him with his words. Mr. Sahin wouldn't leave it at that. He would use the next opportunity to take revenge and destroy his life and – much more important – Erik's life. Mario didn't know why he was that lucky to have Erik as his brother and why his brother didn't hate him for what he had done, but, he was utterly grateful for it.

If it hadn't been so serious and dangerous, the fact that Erik had fallen in love with Mr. Sahin's son of all people could almost have been considered as hilarious and funny, but, as things stood, Mario really didn't feel like laughing about this coincidence. Mario would never forgive himself if he were the one to let Erik's first love come to a bad end.

He sighed, suppressing another sob when his phone started to tootle. He raised his head, wiping away his tears with the back of his hand and picked his phone up. Erik had promised him not to tell anyone about Mario's relationship with his teacher, even not Nuri, and he also had asked him not to tell Marco that his pupil knew about them, at least not now. Mario had been relieved and grateful about that, too, because he simply couldn't handle this topic together with the talk show in his current state and Erik obviously had sensed this. As it seemed, there were still small mercies he could rely on and be thankful for.

“Hey!” he said in a shaky voice, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. Just to hear Marco's voice would make him feel better, he knew that.

“Hey love. How are you doing?” Marco's voice sounded a little bit strange through the speaker, but warm and full of love, nonetheless.

“To be honest, I don't know. Erik praised me for what I did.” His voice was shaking again and he wiped away another tear rolling down his cheek with an impatient gesture.

“Of course, he did, Mario. You were beyond wonderful. I was left speechless. Marcel almost had to ground me with a slap in the face because I was so out of my mind, I couldn't stop screaming, crying and saying silly things all at the same time...” Marco's voice trailed off with an audible gulp.

He seemingly wasn't the only one close to tears. “I thought you were left speechless,” Mario joked weakly with a strangled sound that probably could be considered as a chuckle.

“I was – at first. And after that moment, I started to babble and shout like a maniac. God, Mario, I'm sooo proud of you, I can't tell you. You – you were gorgeous – magnificent, wonderful... I am still left speechless, ripped of any appropriate word to describe what I felt when I heard that speech of you...”

“I don't think that my bosses were as pleased as you obviously are. They will have my head on a silver platter tomorrow,” Mario said in a flat voice. “Oh God, Marco – what have I done! Erik is in love with his son!”

“Yes, I know, Mario. But, you couldn't have reacted in any other way and Erik knows that as much as I do. You couldn't let his insults and false accusations being unanswered, no way. I don't know your bosses, but, I don't think that Mr. Guardiola will be angry with you. After all, he wouldn't be a trainer if he thought the same about sportsmen in general and footballers in special. I only hope that he will go on easy with you tomorrow, it was a rather exhausting day for you. And don't worry about Erik, Mario. He is a fine young boy and he knows that you only did what you had to do. He also knows that Mr. Sahin won't be 'pleased' about his son's choice, simply because Nuri didn't fall in love with the one he chose for him. By the way, I corrected his test this afternoon. Please, don't tell him that, but, he actually has gotten well-earned twelve points in his test! I don't know what happened to boost his grade in this way, but, you really can be proud of him.”

Mario smiled happily, the first wide smile since he had learned about the talk show this afternoon.

“Twelve points, really? This is wonderful news, thank you Marco. I really needed this right now and don't worry, I won't tell him and ruin his joy and surprise when he gets his test back from you. I have to admit that this is all Nuri's fault. He made him speak English the entire weekend, even with me. When I came home from Wolfsburg, he told me that he had promised Nuri to speak only English and so we did. He even didn't answer me when I forgot it and addressed him in German. If he will go on like that, my English will increase, as well,” he snickered, remembering his rather clumsy attempt to explain Erik his math homework in English.

“Uh wow, I would never have expected that. Nuri seems to be even better for him than I first had thought.” He made a pause and then, added gently: “Don't worry love, I'm sure that everything will be fine. You did a great job today and everybody who watched you will say the same. Your bosses were the ones making the mistake of inviting someone to this talk show who apparently isn't fond of footballers. I'm more proud of you than I can say and so is Erik. If I had to guess, then I would say that Nuri is impressed, as well and certainly agrees with you. He won't be angry with Erik, don't worry. Please, promise me that you will go to bed now and sleep. You really need your sleep.”

“Yes, I will, thank you, Marco. I'm feeling much better now,” Mario replied, feeling comforted and calm. His head hurt from his exhaustion, but, he would be able to sleep and to deal with the aftermath of his speech the next day, he was sure about that now.

“Always, Mario. I will always be there for you, I love you, my sweet Julian, no matter what. Sleep well and have wonderful and pleasant dreams – about me!” he said, his voice dropping down to the low and seductive purr he always used in bed and Mario let out a helpless chuckle, because even as tired and confused as he felt right now, his cock twitched very interested by these words and the promise of the pleasures they contained.

“I certainly will. Stop seducing me through the phone when you're not here to make up for it!” he snorted, partly amused, partly frustrated and annoyed and Marco snickered delightedly.

“I will make up for it the next time we'll see each other, I promise you, my love,” his boyfriend purred tenderly. “Good night, my sweet Julian.”

“Good night, my wonderful Romeo.”


	24. The Extortion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day after Mario's speech during the talk show. Mario has to show up in Mr. Rummenigge's office and Erik has to deal with his brother's new fame and some other pleasant and unpleasant things...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was determined to post another chapter today and here it is. I want to say thank you again: you're a wonderful and great audience and your support and feedback means more to me than I can tell you! Please, keep it up and leave kudos or comments if you liked the new chapter, because this kind of reward is very important for every fanfic author!  
> A big hug for all of you who will do!

Mario had a bad feeling when he entered the locker room the next morning. He didn't know what he could have done instead of his passionate speech the previous evening, maybe letting himself and all of the other hard working players be insulted from an arrogant businessman. But, when he had sat there, listening to the contemptuous words of the older man who obviously was full of prejudices and hate for sportsmen in general and footballers in special, he simply had had to say something against it.

Bastian and Philipp smiled at him the second they saw him emerging on the threshold. “Good morning, Mario. Great speech! You have done a great job!” Philipp greeted him and Bastian approvingly nodded his head. “Yes, you were gorgeous yesterday. This asshole! I wanted to punch him in his face!” he confirmed Philipp's words with great emphasis.

Mario pulled a face. “Thank you, guys. I only don't think that Mr. Rummenigge will see it the same way. I insulted one of our most important sponsors,” he sighed, slumping down on the bench with a worried expression on his handsome face.

“After this 'sponsor' had insulted every football player in the world,” voiced Thomas his dislike about the Turkish man who had ridiculed their jobs and profession with his words and his arrogant attitude. Mario smiled weakly.

“Thank you. I do appreciate your support. But, I'm supposed to show up in Mr. Rummenigge's office after training. I got a call early in the morning. I think I will be lucky if I still have a job after that meeting.”

Thomas snorted, shaking his head. “You are much more important than this impudent sponsor, Mario,” he assured him. We won't let them fire you, just because you have told the truth and defended your colleagues. Don't worry.”

Mario sighed again, feeling a little bit better after his teammates' reactions. He had gotten the call from Mr. Rummenigge's secretary right after breakfast and this had caused him to throw up the little he had managed to gulp down right after hanging up the phone. Erik had looked at him with worried eyes when he had emerged from the bathroom again, but to Mario's utter relief, his younger brother had only pressed his hand and said nothing.

He began to change into his training clothes, listening to his teammates, glad that they left him alone and respected his wish to not answer questions at the moment. He had come here very early hoping that he could change and be on the training ground before the mass would show up. Philipp and Thomas took him in their middle as they left the locker room to warm up and Mario walked in between them, pushing every other thought apart from his training in the back of his mind.

He was a footballer. This was his profession, his job and what he loved most except for Erik and Marco. He was good at it, one of the best actually, and he could be proud of what he was doing. There was absolutely nothing to be ashamed of and he wouldn't let an impudent and arrogant businessman ruin his self-confidence and his pride. He had done nothing wrong and he would stand his ground against everyone, no matter how hard it might be.

 

\---------------------------------------------------

 

Training had been exhausting, but, Mario had welcomed it, losing himself in Pep's demanding workout and he had been grateful for the distraction from his worries and his doubts their training match had offered him. Guardiola hadn't commented his appearance on the Talk Show the previous evening and Mario was not so sure what he should think about his trainer's silence, but, close to the end of the match, when he had shot a goal, Pep had gifted him with a smile and an approving nod of his head and this had helped him relax again.

Now, he was standing before Mr. Rummenigge's office, scratching the last shreds of his courage together to lift his hand and knock on the door. He wiped his sweaty palms on his jeans to dry them once more and drew in a deep and shaky breath. Then, he closed his eyes and knocked on the door, forcefully and with more confidence than he actually felt.

“Come in!” sounded Mr. Rummenigge's voice through the closed door and Mario swallowed against the new wave of nausea, pushing the door open with a determined gesture.

“Good morning, Mr. Rummenigge!” he greeted politely, closing the door and crossing the room with firm steps, although his knees felt like jelly and he had to be very carefully to not trip over his own feet.

Mr. Rummenigge watched him with a stern face and an unreadable expression, gesturing to the chair in front of his desk. “Mr. Götze, please, have a seat,” he said tersely instead of a greeting and Mario's heart dropped down in his pants. This was worse than he had already thought. He sat down on the comfortable chair as gracefully as he was able to in his current state, looking the board director straight in the eyes.

“You wanted to talk to me, Mr. Rummenigge?” he asked when the former famous footballer did nothing than just considering him thoughtfully.

“Yes, Mr. Götze. I would like to know what was going on in your head yesterday when you insulted one of our most important sponsors,” he opened up the conversation and Mario felt new anger rising in his gut. Mr. Rummenigge wanted to fight? Good. Then, they would fight.

“If I remember correctly, then it was Mr. Sahin who insulted us footballers, not the other way around, Mr. Rummenigge. I only corrected his opinion about us 'imbecile' sportsmen. With all due respect, I really fail to see why the FC Bayern made a contract with a sponsor who obviously isn't fond of sportsmen, at all, insulting them in public in a very rude way. By all means - the FC Bayern München is a sports club, isn't it? Mr. Sahin must have known that before he signed the contract, right?”

Mr. Rummenigge blinked with surprise. He apparently hadn't expected that his player would fight back and defend his actions instead of apologizing and eat crow. He pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes in the attempt to intimidate the young man sitting before him with straight shoulders and his head held up high.

“Yes, it is a sports club and of course, Mr. Sahin knew that. But, it's also a big concern with more employees than only footballers. I thought that you would know the ropes and that we have to play along. We need sponsors and we can't risk losing them because one of our players tries to be a hero,” Mr. Rummenigge snarled, but, Mario could see that the board director didn't believe his own words. After all, he had been a footballer himself before he had become a member of the board.

“Mr. Sahin is only one sponsor, Mr. Rummenigge. I'm sure that he won't back away just because of my speech. He is a clever businessman and knows quite well that sponsoring the FC Bayern will be very lucrative for him, no matter what I said last night. If it had only been me whom he insulted, then, I would have stayed silent, Mr. Rummenigge. But, he described every footballer as an imbecile who can't count to three and he ridiculed every single young man in the world who does everything to become a footballer in a big club and grant his family a better life with that. I simply couldn't let this speech be unanswered.”

Mr. Rummenigge sighed. “I agree with you, Mario,” he admitted almost gently. “But, I had a hard time this morning. Mr. Sahin was not very - pleased – so to speak. He couldn't do much about it, because Mr. Gardiola agreed wholeheartedly with you; and your declaration yesterday boosted our sales in a way no one could have expected. It seems that half of the young boys living in Germany suddenly want to have a jersey from the FC Bayern with your name and your number. Our online market counted more than three hundred orders in only the last three hours. And this was only the start, I guess. You are a hero now, Mario. Every football fan now adores you even more than they already had after your goal in Rio de Janeiro last summer, because you made them proud and gave them the feeling that there is much more about their stars than meets the eye.”

Mario swallowed. “There is more about us,” he said quietly, thinking of his daily struggles to do his job and still be there for Erik and be the support the younger one needed so badly while their parents were no around. Suddenly, he felt tired to his bones, wishing he could be with Marco on a lonely island and bathe in the blonde teacher's unquestioning love.

Mr. Rummenigge seemed to sense that he was close to a breakdown, because he dismissed him with a smile. “You can go now, Mario. You don't have to join the training in the afternoon today, I talked to Mr. Gardiola and he agreed with me to give you off for the rest of the day. Just do me a favor and don't do something like what you did yesterday again, at least not without speaking to me at first.”

Mario stood up. “I won't, Mr. Rummenigge, thank you,” he said, leaving the room after a firm handshake. Maybe, Marco would have time for him this afternoon. He really needed him right now.  
A small smile played around the corner of his mouth as he started typing on his phone while he headed to the garage where he had parked his car. Spending the afternoon with his Romeo certainly would cheer him up and he couldn't wait to tell his beloved Romeo that he had some unexpected free time. Mario pressed the send-button and unlocked his car. Having a teacher as a boyfriend who didn't work in an office from nine to five sometimes had its clear benefit and Mario was determined to make the best out of this advantage. When he drove away from the club, a happy smile softened his features. Soon, he would see and feel Marco again. The day might have started dreadfully, but, it would end perfectly, Mario was quite sure about that.

 

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Erik rubbed his forehead, trying to ease the pain behind his eyes. The morning had been awful. As it seemed, every pupil of his school had watched the Talk Show with his brother the previous evening and his classmates had wanted to know every little detail about it from Erik. Erik had tried to explain to them that he didn't know more than they did, but, not one of the other teenagers had listened to him. Mario was their hero by now, even more than he had already been after the world's championship and Erik found himself in the middle of attention all of a sudden, wishing for a hole in the ground to swallow him and hide him from the questions everyone wanted to ask him.

Mr. Reus had shot him a concerned look from time to time during their German class, but he had left him alone and Erik had been deeply grateful for his understanding. To make things worse, the ones who knew that Nuri was Mr. Sahin's son seemed to hold the young man liable for his father's actions, glaring at him and whispering secretly behind his back when they thought that he wouldn't notice it and there was nothing Erik could do to help him.

Nuri apparently was used to this kind of attention and behavior, he only smiled reassuringly at Erik and acted as if nothing had happened, at all. The dark-haired teenager obviously was fine, and he didn't care about the looks and the whisper. Erik envied him a little bit for his ability to ignore the hostile and stupid behavior, wishing he could ignore all of these false 'friends' surrounding him, as well.

He trotted behind his classmates with Matze close by his side to their classroom where Mr. Reus was already waiting for them for their next class: English. They had had sports and their teacher Mr. Kehl always overran their time. To their luck, Mr. Reus was one of the few teachers knowing quite well that it was always Mr. Kehl's fault and he never told them off or gave them extra-work to do like other teachers did when they were too late for their next class.

He only smiled at them, drawling: “I'm relieved to see that Mr. Kehl showed some mercy today and left all of you in one piece.” The pupils began to snicker, because their adored class teacher was right with what he had said. The last time, Mr. Kehl had strained them that much that three pupils had gotten rid of their breakfast right in the gymnasium and two other pupils had sprained their ankles and had needed to visit a doctor because of the horrible pain directly after the gym class. Mr. Reus had sat there with five pupils less than usual in his class, musing loudly about the fact that sometimes, sport was less healthy than one might think.

Erik laughed with the others to avoid getting more attention by making a sour face, even though he didn't feel like laughing and sat down next on his usual chair, shooting a furtive glance in Nuri's direction. Nuri had promised him to come home with him after school again and this promise was the only thing making this morning bearable.

He watched Mr. Reus pulling their tests out of his old leather bag and a nervous feeling suddenly rummaged in his stomach. The test had been rather difficult and Erik really wasn't sure if he had managed to pass this test. He wasn't sure if he should be relieved to learn about his grade so soon or not, because Mr. Reus always corrected the tests right within the next few days. This time, he had been very quick, even for his customs. Mr. Reus let his eyes wander over his pupils, searching for the one which test he had on top of his stack of notebooks. Most of the teachers Erik knew had an easy system to hand the tests back to their pupils, normally the pupil with the best test got their test either first or was the last to get it. Other teachers simply used the alphabet, but, Mr. Reus never used either of that rules. He handed the tests back every which way and no pupil could draw any conclusion out of his system.

The young teacher seemed to be in a good mood though, which probably was a good sign that the test in general had been good, but, that didn't mean that all pupils had gotten a good grade. Erik could see that Marie pulled a face as she looked at her test, which most likely meant that she had gotten only thirteen or fourteen points instead of her usual fifteen, but, when her friend Lisa looked at her test, too, she cried out in surprise: “Uh Marie, only eleven points? How did you do that?” Marie blushed furiously, hissing at her friend who snapped her mouth shut immediately, wincing and deeply ashamed.

Erik grinned inwardly with satisfaction, Marie really 'deserved' her 'only' eleven points which were a good grade nonetheless, only not as good as Marie normally was used to. Erik would have been more than happy to have eleven points and his stomach formed itself to a tight knot as Mr. Reus approached him. His hands began to sweat as he reached out to take his notebook. Mr. Reus smiled warmly at him. “Very well done, Erik,” he murmured silently as he noticed Erik's frightened look and Erik took his test with trembling fingers, staring at the front of the notebook, unable to open it.

Matze gently dug him in his ribs. “Open it!” he demanded, bending over to take a look at the grade. Erik flipped through the former tests, all bad grades with only five or four points. He drew in a shaky breath and closed his eyes for a moment, steeling himself for what he would see there written in Mr. Reus' prominent handwriting. His teacher had praised him and that surely meant that he had managed to get perhaps eight or nine points?

“Erik wow, look at it! You have gotten twelve points!” Matze shouted all of a sudden and Erik flinched and his eyes flew open. “W-w-what?” he stammered, staring disbelievingly at his test. There it was: a big fat red twelve, right under his test. Mr. Reus had even written a comment under the grade: _'Very well done. Your English has improved, a lot and your summary shows that you have understood what the book is about.'_

Erik blinked and pressed a hand on his mouth to suppress his own shout of joy. “Twelve points, I have twelve points!” he whispered shakily and when he looked up, he saw Nuri's eyes watching him with a tender expression. The dark-haired teenager smiled at him, it was only a brief smile, but it was filled with so much joy and love that Erik felt his eyes become wet. Nuri looked away as Mr. Reus handed him his own test with a brief nod and Erik could see the red fifteen just before Nuri closed his notebook and shoved it rather carelessly in his bag between all of the other books and sheets of papers.

The rest of the class went by in a haze and Erik was grateful again that Mr. Reus left him alone with his thoughts. He grinned stupidly and dazed, dwelling in the feeling of his unexpected success until the bell rang, announcing the end of class and the beginning of the ten minutes break between the fourth and the fifth class. He strolled out of the room with the others searching with his eyes for Nuri's figure. They normally didn't spend the breaks together, but, he wanted to talk to him, at least for one moment.

When he felt someone pulling at his jacket, he turned around, recoiling with surprise as he faced Marie all of a sudden. “Marie, what's up?” he asked impatiently.

Marie smiled at him, but, it was a dangerous smile. “You will make sure that Nuri will learn English with me, Erik. You will also make sure that I will get the role of the Juliet. I don't care about how you will do it, just do it. Otherwise, I will go to Mr. Sahin and tell him that his son is in love with Mr. Götze's little step-brother.”


	25. Trouble With Shakespeare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marie tried to blackmail Erik. Will he tell Nuri about her extortion? Mario in the meantime is on his way to spend the afternoon with his beloved Marco...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't want let you wait for too long for this chapter and so I hurried with it. The next one will take a while, but be much more passionate and happy as this one.  
> My dear audience, thank you so much for your wonderful support, your feedback is invaluable for me! Please go on with it and let me know if you liked this chapter as much as the others, kudos and comments are love! :-)

Mario threw himself into Marco's arms the second the door of Marco's flat closed behind him. Marco stumbled backwards, completely caught off guard by the passionate onslaught, his left arm flinging around his smaller boyfriend to hold him and his right arm waving helplessly through the air to keep his balance.

It was a helpless undertaking though, and they went down in a heap of intermingled limbs and bodies with Marco's back hitting the rough carpet of the corridor forcefully and Mario's heavy weight on top of him almost crushing him.

“Ouch...hhmmppf!” The air was pressed out of Marco's lungs and he let out a sound that was partly a chuckle and partly a painful groan. “Mario, what are you doing?” he finally gasped out after forcing enough air back into his lungs to be able to speak again.

Mario looked down at him, his cheeks red from the cold and his eyes dilated with his arousal. He was truly a breathtaking sight and Marco could feel his own cock twitch happily because of the answering pressure of Mario's obvious joy to see him again rubbing against his own hardening manhood.

“Saying hello to you in a proper way after not seeing you for an eternity?” Mario stated the obvious with a pout and a frown, both suiting him surprisingly well and accentuating his boyish features in a tempting way. The brown-haired footballer might be smaller than Marco, but he was in perfect shape and pinned him effectively on the hard ground while he started to move his hips rhythmically to get more friction on his hard-on.

Marco quirked a mocking eyebrow at him. “You don't plan to get us off here on the hard floor fully dressed, do you? Take pity on me, please, my old bones won't take that well.”

Mario's pout deepened, but he let go of Marco and got up to his feet with one single fluent move. Marco stayed where he was, because he still felt a little bit dizzy from the fall, admiring the beautiful sight of his boyfriend looming over him. Mario offered him his hand and Marco let himself be pulled up on his feet, as well.

“Old bones!” The younger one snorted, shooting him an indignant look before he walked into Marco's living room with his head held up high just as if he lived here. Marco followed him, musing about his strange thoughts. He had never wanted to share his flat and his life with anyone before, glad to have his privacy and his freedom to live the way he wanted to live, but the thought of sharing both with Mario was suddenly very tempting but also a little bit scaring because they knew each other only for such a short amount of time.

Marco had a wonderful family and he had been raised with love, but he had felt utter relief as he had moved in his own flat, nonetheless. His intelligence oftentimes had made it hard for him to be that close to other people, even though it was his own family. The necessity to hide his versatile mind and his understanding for things his parents and sisters had not had been exhausting, but, he had done it to not hurt their feelings more oftentimes than he could count. The only one he had always felt comfortable in his company with before he had met Mario was his friend Marcel. Marcel had a way to accept that Marco was much more clever than he himself and to ground him whenever Marco was in danger to be carried away by his own brainpower that helped the blonde to stay focused and patient with others. Marco was deeply grateful that he had found such a wonderful friend and he valued Marcel's friendship, a lot.

Mario also seemed to be perfectly fine with his boyfriend's high IQ, Marco had never seen any sign of annoyance, jealousy or envy when they had talked about stuff and he had slowly begun to not hide his quickly working mind any longer when they were together, discussing Shakespeare or politics. The young footballer simply accepted that Marco put two and two together much faster than he himself, and Marco found Mario's way of thinking and regarding his surroundings refreshing and interesting. Mario had promised him to teach him a few lessons about the football rules and Marco was truly looking forward to it, because he was totally clueless when it came to this topic and he was curious if he would have difficulties with understanding something he had had no interest in before.

The thought of living with Mario, falling asleep every night in his arms and discussing the newspaper articles during breakfast was rather appealing and Marco let out a deep sigh, because he of course knew that it wasn't possible, at least not now. Mario had to take care of Erik when their parents were overseas and Marco wouldn't risk anything that would cause problems with him being Erik's teacher and force the young teenager to change the class.

Mario turned around on him, obviously worried because of his heartfelt sigh. “Is everything okay, Marco?” he asked concerned and Marco hurried to smile at him, taking his beloved Julian in his arms. “Yes, now that you're finally here, everything is perfect, my sweet Julian. I only have to see to preparing my next English class for tomorrow. Shakespeare is giving me headache.”

Mario kissed him longingly, his tongue slipping into the soft warmth of the blonde teacher's sweet mouth and greeting its counterpart happily after the long time they had been apart. When they finally parted again, both of them gasped for air.

“Trouble with your beloved Shakespeare? What kind of trouble?” he asked curiously, stepping behind Marco and looking over his shoulder as Marco sat down at his desk in one corner of his living room again.

Marco sighed. He rubbed his forehead, trying to ease the pain behind his eyes. “My class is supposed to play 'Romeo and Juliet' at our celebration before the Easter holidays. I'm still not sure about the roles for everyone and the setting also is giving me a headache. I have only a short amount of money and the costumes will not be affordable. I asked several theaters about the costs for the loan of their costumes and it's simply too expensive, even more because the costumes must be changed for my pupils.” He pointed at the list in front of him and Mario bent over his shoulder, considering it while he started to massage his tensed shoulders.

Marco let out a blissful moan, closing his eyes as he felt some of the tension drain away under his beloved boyfriend's tender service. “Uh wow, you really know how to massage one's shoulders!” he groaned and Mario kissed his ear and chuckled amused. “Of course, I do. Us footballers have to do that oftentimes in between matches when no one else is available.”

For a while, there was only silence, broken by Marco's groans and purrs now and then and he quickly dropped into a state of dozy contentment when Mario suddenly asked: “Why don't you use a modern setting instead? Like the setting in West Side Story or the film with Leonardo di Caprio? Maybe the seventies or early eighties? Punks and poppers? I'm sure that the kids could get the right clothing easily from their parents, aunts or uncles and it would be much easier to change them and also much cheaper. One family is a punk family and the other the popper family.”

Marco snapped back into consciousness within the blink of an eye, turning his head and staring at the younger one. “Mario! This is perfect! Ah, I could kiss you right now!”

Mario grinned, gently tousling his hair. “You're welcome. And please, feel free to kiss me whenever you like,” he drawled, his eyes sparkling with his desire.

Marco chuckled. “Oh no, if I kissed you now, we most likely wouldn't make it to the bedroom and I told you that my bones are too old for making out on the hard floor. I brew coffee, please help yourself. I really need to finish this and then, I will be all yours, my sweet Julian, I promise you!”

Mario pulled a face, obviously disappointed that he had to wait until he would get his reward for his suggestion, but he let go of Marco's shoulders and toddled off in the direction of Marco's kitchen without further protest, knowing that he wouldn't be able to lure his Romeo into his bed until he had finished his work.

Marco watched him leave with a tender smile before he focused on his work again, The sooner he finished it, the sooner he would be able to enjoy the afternoon with his own special Julian.

 

\-----------------------------------------------

 

Erik fumbled with his key, desperately trying to open the front door, but this time not because he felt butterflies in his stomach because of Nuri's tempting closeness, but because he felt as if he would throw up the very next minute.

He could feel Nuri's eyes upon his back, but the elder one said nothing, only watched him fiddling with his key ring in the attempt to find the right one. After one more minute and the ring almost slipping from his trembling and sweaty fingers, the black-haired teenager took the ring from him and opened the door with the right key still without saying anything.

Erik gratefully pushed the door open and let his bag and his jacket fall down to the ground right where he stood, not bothering to take his shoes off as he rushed into the guest-restroom just in time as his stomach finally decided to get rid of its contents. He dropped on his knees before the toilet and closed his eyes in pain and shame while his entire body shook under the dry heaves.

A warm hand on his cold and sweaty forehead and a strong arm around his shoulder keeping him upright made him flinch. “Hush, sweetheart, everything's okay,” his boyfriend murmured gently tightening his grip around Erik's upper arm and thwarting the brunette's weak attempt to get away from him.

Erik groaned because of a new wave of pain shooting through him as his stomach cramped again. His stomach had been almost empty and there was nothing he could sacrifice apart from bitter bile, but the retching didn't stop and the whole situation was awful and embarrassing.

“Please, don't do this, please, leave me alone, this must be disgusting for you,” he sobbed, doubling over again, his shame boosting his nausea even more.

“Bullshit,” Nuri growled with more emphasis than he most likely had intended to lay in his voice and he pulled the younger one close again as Erik startled away. “Shsh, hush, Erik. I would never leave you alone like this. I could never be disgusted because you're sick. All I want to do is be with you and help you.” Nuri kissed his temple with so much tenderness that the brunette couldn't hold back his tears any longer.

Fortunately, his stomach seemed to have realized that there was nothing left to throw up, and he leaned back against Nuri's strong frame, relieved that the vomiting had finally stopped.

Nuri flushed the toilet and stretched to reach the small towel hanging beside the sink. Erik let his boyfriend wipe his face and then, he nestled against him, burying his face on his chest while his tears started to flow. Nuri held him close, rocking him and stroking his back in soothing circles while he cried on his chest and the words of comfort and love he whispered into his sweetheart's ear were an odd mixture of German, English and Turkish, but Erik didn't care about the words, Nuri's tender and loving voice told him all he needed to know and he clung to the elder one as if he was his life-line within the heavy storm threatening to blow him away.

Finally, there were no tears left and Erik's sobbing faded to a silent hiccup. Neither of them seemed willing to get up though and so they simply stayed where they were, sitting on the tiles of the restroom floor, holding each other as tight as they could until Nuri eventually took his shoes off and gently pulled him up on his feet.

Before Erik even knew what the dark-haired teenager was up to, Nuri had lifted him up and carried him into the large living room. Erik felt too exhausted to object and let himself be laid on the couch and covered with a blanket, grateful that he could lie down.

Nuri crouched beside the couch, considering him thoughtfully. “I will brew you a tea. You need to drink something and tea will settle your stomach,” he said and Erik managed a brief smile. “I'm so sorry,” he whispered brokenly, but Nuri shook his head. “There's no need to be sorry, sweetheart. I will be back right away. Close your eyes and rest a little bit.”

Erik did as he was told and the next thing he knew was that a hand on his shoulder gently shook him awake. He blinked against the dazed feeling and reluctantly opened his eyes. His throat was dry like sandpaper and sore from the retching and he had a horrible taste in his mouth.

“Sorry for waking you up, babe, but you really need to drink something, you don't look so good.”

Erik carefully sat up, closing his eyes again as the room began to spin around him. “How long was I out?” he croaked and Nuri lifted a mug at his lips. “More than an hour. I thought it best to let you sleep for a while, but, you're pale and your lips are dry, you're dehydrated and need to get some liquid back into your system.”

The tea was still warm and smelled of chamomile, one of his favorites. “What did you do while I slept?” he asked curiously after quenching his thirst. The warm tea also eased the sore feeling in his throat and helped him to get rid of the bad taste.

“Homework.” Nuri pulled a face, but his amused chuckle told Erik that it hadn't been that bad. He returned the smile and Nuri's loving gaze and Nuri who had made himself comfortable beside him on the couch pulled him close until he lay with his head in his lap. “After finishing my homework, I simply sat there and watched you sleep. You are so beautiful and sweet, you have no idea, Erik how wonderful you are.”

His voice was as tender and devoted as no one else had ever addressed him and he swallowed and curled himself up in Nuri's lap. “I love you, Nuri,” he whispered, new tears welling up behind his eyelids. “I love you, too, my sweet Erik. More than I ever loved someone. Do you want to talk about what's troubling you so? It has something to do with Marie, right? I saw her talking to you and ever since that talk you look as if you had seen a ghost.”

Erik hadn't wanted to tell Nuri about Marie's attempt to blackmail him, but as Nuri now told him that he had seen them, he couldn't keep his worries to himself any longer.

“It is all because of this damn Shakespeare!” he blurted out. “Because of this damn play! She is obsessed with being your Juliet and she threatened me to go to your father and tell him that we are together if I won't convince you to learn English with her and insist of her being your Juliet!”

He began to sob again. “I'm so sorry, Nuri! I'm sure you will hate me now! If I had had my face under control and hadn't made goo-goo eyes at you, then she would never have been able to...”

Nuri pulled him up, his hand taking hold of Erik's chin to look him in the eyes. Erik lowered his gaze, but Nuri's grip caused him to look at him again.

“Erik, stop that, immediately! You did nothing wrong! You didn't make goo-goo eyes at me and Marie is a selfish and spoiled girl who believes that the entire world is meant to circle around only her. I won't learn English with her and it's not me who has to decide who's supposed to play the Juliet.” A crooked grin made his beautiful eyes shine and Erik's heart began to race. “I would prefer that you would be my Juliet, but of course, I know that it's not possible. If Mr. Reus decides that Marie will play the Juliet, then so be it.” He shrugged his shoulders.

Erik swallowed audibly. “But, if she really goes to your father – after that talk show... I'm afraid that your father will damage my brother and separate us and...”

Nuri laid his finger on his lips to silence him. “Marie won't do anything, I will see to that, I promise you, Erik. You should talk to your brother though, but I'm sure that the heads of the club know quite well how important your brother is for their club. Don't let her do this to you, Erik.”

“But, when your father learns that you're in love with another guy, with me...”

Nuri framed his face with his hands, looking him deep in his hazel-green eyes, now red from crying.

“Erik, are you ashamed of us? Are you ashamed of being in love with a boy?” he asked and his voice sounded hurt and unsure for the first time.

Erik vigorously shook his head. “No!! I'm not ashamed. I know for quite some time that I'm not into girls. And I will never be ashamed of you. But, your father – if Marie tells him...”

Nuri smiled grimly. “My father knows that I'm gay, Erik. I told him that before I moved back to Munich. He chose to ignore it, but she wouldn't tell him anything he doesn't already know. Please, believe me Erik, Marie is no threat to us. I love you and I won't let anybody come between us.”

He kissed Erik with all the love and passion he felt for him and Erik closed his eyes, returning the kiss with the same longing and ardor. Maybe Nuri was right and everything would be fine again. He only had to believe it.


	26. You Are My Sun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco and Mario have an entire afternoon and evening to themselves. Two handsome young men crazy in love. Must I say more?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dear sjst, I want to dedicate this chapter to you, I hope you will enjoy it. :-)
> 
> My dear readers, I promised to make up for the roller-coaster I posted yesterday with chapter 18 of Dangerous Love and I also promised fluff, sweet and romantic after the last chapter of this story.  
> This chapter is very fluffy, romantic and hopefully also very hot and I hope that it will make up for all I put you through! It is also pretty long and I want you to enjoy it!  
> More than ten thousand hits and almost 400 kudos, not to mention all of your lovely comments, you are simply the best! Thank you so much for your interest and outstanding support, please, keep up with both and leave kuods and comments if you liked this chapter! :-)

Marco looked up from his work when he heard a silent sound coming from his couch where Mario had curled up himself half an hour ago after he had come back from the kitchen with a large mug of coffee. He had tried to read a little bit after he had made himself comfortable, but obviously the last days had taken their toll and exhausted him, because his sweet boyfriend had fallen asleep with the book lying next to his head and now he lay there sleeping peacefully and snoring slightly.

Marco smiled tenderly as he watched his beloved one sleep. Mario's cheeks were rosy and his thick and long eyelashes formed two half moons on the soft skin underneath his closed eyes.

Mario's sensitive lips were slightly parted and Marco could catch a glimpse of his tongue peaking out of the kissable mouth, cheekily and sweetly. Mario looked so young and vulnerable and Marco's heart ached as he remembered the heavy weight the brown-haired footballer had had to shoulder lately: His care for his younger stepbrother, his break up with his girlfriend and the happenings of the talk show and his encounter with the narrow-minded sponsor Savas Sahin who happened to be also the father of his brother's boyfriend who happened to be also his own boyfriend's pupil.

This was pretty much for a young man who had to deal with his own fame and the things this fame brought with it while making up with his brother for the long absence of their parents.

Marco knew that Mario was strong and tough most of the time, but he also could see the dark shadows and the thin lines under his eyes and that he had lost a little bit weight. Marco mused whether he should wake him up or let him sleep for a while longer as he sipped from his own coffee, pulling a face because the dark-brown brew had become cold and tasted bitterly in his mouth.

He put the mug back on the desk and looked at his work. He was done with the preparations for the next English class and only had to decide who of his pupils would play which role. It was clear that Nuri would be the Romeo, because he was simply perfect for this role, but Marco had a hard time with the other roles, especially with the role of the Juliet. Marie might be the obvious choice considering the grades only, but Marco never relied only on his pupils' grades when he had to make such decisions and he knew that he would have to think carefully about it before he finally decided who would play the Juliet.

His eyes wandered back from his work to the couch where his own personal Julian was sleeping and after rethinking his options, he decided with a little bit of a heavy heart to wake him up. He already suspected that Mario would be angry and disappointed if he let him sleep longer because they had only so little time to themselves and he also craved to feel Mario and make love to him. He wanted to hold him in his arms and show him how much he was loved and desired and that with him, he didn't need to be the strong one the entire time.

Marco silently stood up and walked to the couch, crouching down before it, reaching out with his hand to stroke the smooth fragrant skin of Mario's softly rounded cheek. He watched his boyfriend dreamily as his fingers started to follow the soft rounds and the valleys of the sleeping man's face, exploring every line with rapt devotion. Mario was so beautiful in his vulnerability and his defenselessness and Marco's throat tightened with his deep feelings for the young footballer. His fingers followed the half moon of the dark lashes spread out on the pale skin and traveled along his temple to the hairline, dwelling in the sensation of the short fragrant hair tickling his sensitive fingertips.

Mario murmured something unintelligible and his eyelids fluttered as Marco's tender caresses started to wake him up from his slumber. When he opened his eyes, still hooded from his sleep and a small happy smile formed on his lips, Marco's heart missed a beat before it started to race with all the love that wanted to erupt from it.

The endless brown eyes shone with the younger one's love and Marco was sure that he had never seen anything more beautiful in his whole life so far. Mario was his world, his sun, the center of his universe and he smiled back, his fingers gliding as soft as a feather over the smiling lips. “Wake up, Sunny,” he whispered lovingly and Mario made a small content sound and stretched like a cat after taking a nap in the warm sun. “Sunny?” he asked curiously, his voice still husky from having been sound asleep only a couple of minutes earlier. “I thought that I'm your Julian,” he complained, but his voice gave him away because it sounded too much like a happy purr to fool Marco. Marco loved giving his sweet boyfriend pet names and Mario obviously was happy and content to get them.

He placed a chaste and sweet kiss on the younger one's nose. “Yes, Sunny, my sweet Julian. You will always be my Julian, but you are my sun, my world and therefore, Sunny just suits you perfectly.”

'Sunny' snickered happily, his eyes sparkling with joy. “I like that – being your sun,” he admitted before he became serious, framing Marco's face hovering above him with his own hands. “I love you, Marco. I'd never thought I could love someone that way like I love you.” He pursed his lips and looked around as if to orientate himself. “How long did I sleep? Did I snore?” he asked sheepishly, smiling longingly at the blonde, his cheeks rosy from his embarrassment.

Marco's own happy smile was a reflection of Mario's loving smile. “I love you, too, Sunny,” he whispered, kissing him on his sweet lips. “About half an hour and no, you didn't snore,” he then answered Mario's questions, using a little white lie to spare the young man further embarrassment. Truth to be told, he had enjoyed the sweet noise of Mario's silent snoring, but he sensed the brunette's discomfort about falling asleep on his boyfriend's couch in the middle of the afternoon and it wouldn't do any harm to reassure him that everything was fine. “What do you think about having a nice bath with me?” he purred to distract him from his embarrassment and Mario's eyes darkened instantly with his arousal.

“I'd love that,” he moaned, shifting his weight as he became hard again. Marco chuckled and got up to his feet, offering the footballer his hand. Mario let himself be pulled up, swaying a little bit because of a sudden dizziness. Marco wrapped his arm around his waist and kissing and stroking, they made their way to Marco's bathroom, two young men deeply in love and happy to be together and having an entire afternoon and evening to themselves.

 

\-----------------------------------------------

 

The water made silent splashing sounds as they glided into the tub, Marco immediately straddling the younger one and rubbing his backside against Mario's lap in a very seductive way while he claimed his mouth in another heated kiss.

They had undressed each other while the hot water rushed into the tub and the damp air had been filled with the wet sounds of their kisses, their sighs and moans that had been audible despite the roaring sound of the water cascading along the porcelain. One of the reasons why Marco had wanted this flat had been the very large tub where two grown up men could easily bathe together. Marco was a sucker for excessive bathing sessions and being able to bathe with the love of his life was the cream topping of this wonderful afternoon.

The world outside might be grayish and cold, because it was just another gloomy winter day for most of the people, but for Marco, his own personal sun was shining and he was surrounded by warmth and love and everything he could have asked for.

Mario snickered beneath him, he had to crane his neck to return his Romeo's passionate kiss and his hands closed around Marco's hips to keep him from rubbing and wriggling his ass. Marco moaned disappointed and broke the kiss, his skin flushed because of the hot water and his strong arousal.

Mario's snicker sent another hot wave right into his groin and he squirmed and tried to get more friction on his poor painfully hard cock.

Mario raised a mocking eyebrow at him. “You don't plan to get us off here fully naked in the bathtub, do you?” he teased his eager boyfriend with tender amusement, returning the favor from one hour earlier as Marco had teased him, and another desperate moan fled from Marco's lips.

“Could we take the edge out of it, please?” he gasped out. “I want you to make love to me, slowly and very very long after the bath, but that would work so much better if we took the edge out of _this_ right now?” he emphasized the word 'this' as he pressed his hard member against Mario's sixpack.

Mario's happy chuckle made Marco's cock throb and leak. “I think we can do this, my horny Romeo,” he agreed with a mischievous grin that made his brown eyes sparkle and caused Marco's needy cock to leak more pre-come out of the sensitive slit.

His right hand glided along Marco's hipbone to the small of his back and further down to the tempting rounds of Marco's perfectly shaped ass cheeks. Marco bent his head down to kiss the famous footballer who happened to be his wonderful boyfriend asking himself how he could be so lucky to call this astonishing being his beloved Julian, but when their lips touched, he stopped thinking and began to feel only. His tongue slipped out of his mouth, looking for entrance into the sweet heat where its counterpart would wait for another happy dance and the entrance was granted immediately, soft lips parting to let the cheeky conqueror in.

The tender intrusion pulled more throaty moans from both of them and Marco spread his legs wider and shifted his weight to take both of their pulsing cocks in his hand and stroke them together. Mario shivered underneath him and arched into the touch, as aroused and needy as he was himself. Marco's hand glided up and down easily because of the fragrant hot water and the creamy liquid both of their hard erections were coated with and Marco wasn't surprised to feel two fingers pushing into his tight heat instead of only one, filling his emptiness with their gentle ministration.

“God yes, deeper, more!” he groaned out, tickling Mario's lips with the puffs of air of his gasps before deepening the kiss again and dueling with his lover's tongue for dominance one more time. He licked his way around in Mario's mouth, claiming and exploring and the movements of his hand became more erratic and faster with every second that passed. Mario shivered and squirmed beneath him, lost in his own desire, and the water splashed around them in tiny waves, adding to the stimulation by caressing Marco's sensitive skin with every wave that swapped against his body and Marco couldn't remember the last time he had needed to come so badly.

The brunette pulled his fingers out, only to push in again with three and although the angle wasn't as perfect that he could brush over Marco's sweet spot with every thrust, the feeling of Mario's fingers buried deep inside him, pumping tenderly to lose him up was all he needed to feel the pleasure building in his groin. Mario's cock was as rock-hard as his own aching member and Marco could tell by the way he moved his hips that his sweet Julian, his shining sun wasn't far behind him and Marco simply let go and allowed his orgasm to wash over him and take him away with its force.

Hot waves of release erupted from his pulsing manhood, spilling over his hand and Mario's erection like lava would erupt from an exploding volcano and only one second after his own explosion, his boyfriend followed him over the edge, his shooting cock adding to the mess Marco was making, his fingers digging involuntarily into the blonde's sweet spot, making Marco cry out into their ardent kiss.

“God, Sunny!” his hoarse scream echoed in the damp air of the bathroom and Marco didn't care whether the old lady living in the flat next door could hear his shouts of pleasure or not. He slumped forward, his hand still clenched around their now softening dicks and Mario's arm flung around him to support his weight and keep the taller man from crushing him. Marco nuzzled the smooth skin of Mario's vulnerable throat, inhaling deeply the tempting male scent, purring contentedly.

“I love you, Sunny, my sweet Julian,” he finally whispered, pulling back to look at the one who meant the world to him. Mario smiled. “I love you, too, my wonderful Marco, my hero, my Romeo.” They shared another gentle kiss with closed lips, but it was as tender and loving as their passionate kisses had been, before Mario's boyish happy grin sent a shiver of new anticipation along Marco's spine. “You said something about slow and long lovemaking. How about we move this to the bedroom now?”

 

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They had moved it to the bedroom, making short work of drying themselves and when Mario pressed him down on the mattress, their skins were still slightly damp.

Marco didn't care about it though, all he cared about was the wonderful pressure of Mario's weight upon him, the perfect male body covering his own in all its naked glory. His manhood showed its interest in their closeness very clearly by hardening for a second time within half an hour and Mario proved his youthful stamina by his own proud erection as their groins pressed against each other.

Marco groped blindly for the drawer of his bedside table, pulling the needed things out of it hastily. Mario pushed his fingers inside him again passing his time with making Marco crazy with longing and Marco knew that he was more than ready to be taken.

He was still wide and loose enough to go without further preparation and all he could think of was to be filled to the hilt with Mario's wonderful thick hard cock fitting so perfectly in his empty and needy core. The package with the condom fell down on the floor because of his hastiness and he cursed silently under his breath, drawing another chuckle from from his beloved Sunny.

“Damn it! Stupid rubber!”

“Uhu, my Romeo, I'm shocked to hear those words coming out of your beautiful mouth! I don't think that Shakespeare would be very pleased to hear one of his biggest fans using such a language of the gutter. Sweet talk is what you are supposed to whisper into your Julian's ears!”

Marco blushed, scowling at Mario's laughing face. The effect was damaged by the expression of sheer lust on his face and his almost black eyes, his pupils blown with his desire.

“Could you please not teach me lessons about appropriate behavior while you have three fingers buried knuckles-deep in my ass?” he groused and Mario teased him by pulling his fingers almost out, snickering cheerfully. “Shall I stop this then to teach you properly?” he asked seriously, raising his eyebrow, and Marco let out a strangled cry and arched his back, his eager hole swallowing the cheeky digits again.

“No, God, no. Mario, please take me!” he whined desperately and Mario bent down, soothing him with loving kisses. “I will right away, love, don't worry,” he promised hoarsely, pulling his fingers out and grasping the bottle with the lube.

When Marco tried to turn and search for the rubber lying before the bed, Mario's hand stopped him and he looked questioningly at the younger one. Mario smiled sheepishly. “Yesterday, I got my results,” he said quietly. “I'm clean and healthy and I would never even think of cheating on you and fucking around, Marco. I'm old-schooled when it comes to relationships, even though most of the people won't believe that. I never cheated on my girlfriends and I never hopped from one bed into another one. I want you without it if it's okay with you.”

Marco reached out and stroked Mario's cheek. “I'm old-schooled myself, Mario. I would never cheat on the love of my life. I donate blood on a regular basis, so you don't need to worry about that, either. And yes, I want it, too,” he answered sincerely. “I would love to feel you without any barrier.”

Mario's smile was the most beautiful sight Marco had ever seen and they kissed while Mario lined his throbbing length up and then covered Marco's trembling body again. They kissed and stroked and Mario slowly oh so slowly pushed deep inside the blonde's waiting heat welcoming him with warmth and just the right pressure to make the intrusion deliciously intensive without causing any pain or discomfort. Marco groaned and arched his back, swallowing every inch of the wonderful cock filling and possessing him and his fingers scratched helplessly over Mario's strong muscled back as the sensation of being so close to the love of his life almost overwhelmed him.

“Love you! Love you so!” they gasped out at the same time, soft lips kissing every bit of skin within their reach, hot puffs of air breathing against sweaty and heated flesh with every murmured word of love, longing and ardor as they became only one, two hearts beating line one and one soul sharing two bodies connected in the most intimate way.

Mario set up a torturing slow rhythm of pulling out and pushing in and the feeling of velvet-like smooth skin, slippery and hot over rock-hard flesh brushing over his sensitive nub instead of the cool and unpleasant feel of the latex made Marco shiver and shudder with every movement. His cock was leaking and aching again and he wrapped his long legs around Mario's back and lifted his hips from the mattress to feel his skilled lover as deep inside him as possible. He was embarrassingly close to his next orgasm although they just had started and his sweet Julian of course, sensed it and stayed still.

“Sunny, please, move!” Marco begged almost sobbing and Mario laughed his wonderful laughter and shook his head. “Oh no, you promised me slow and long lovemaking after 'taking the edge out of it' how you called it, but I can feel how close you are and I won't let that happen, so you better be patient and calm down a little bit!”

Marco bit his swollen lip, struggling to scratch the last pieces of his self-control together, but even though Mario didn't move, his cock was long and thick enough that the engorged head rested exactly where Marco craved so badly to feel it and the slight pulsing Mario couldn't suppress stimulated the blonde's prostate enough to push him towards the edge without one of them needing to move.

Marco threw his head from one side of the pillow to the other, fighting hard, silent mewls and cries escaping his bitten lips and just when he thought he would go crazy and die because of his unfulfilled desire, Mario took pity on him and began to move, setting up an harder and faster rhythm to satisfy his beloved Romeo's needs. “You want me that bad?” he whispered, his lips ghosting over Marco's sweaty face.

“Yes, Mario, God, yes, please, oh, please, please!” was all Marco could whimper and then, Mario's hungry lips swallowed every sound escaping his throat. “Hush, I'll give you what you need, love,” the younger one assured him, snaking his right hand between their connected bodies to wrap it around the obvious proof of Marco's strong desire. The next rather forceful thrust against Marco's sweet spot catapulted the young teacher into sweet oblivion and only Mario's mouth muffling his loud scream granted that the old lady living next door didn't startle from her daily afternoon nap because of the audible evidence of the blonde's ecstasy and complete satisfaction.

Stars exploded behind Marco's closed eyelids as he shot his overwhelming pleasure into Mario's clever fingers stroking him through his climax and when it was over and Marco lay there trembling and gasping for air, he somehow managed to croak out:

“Mario, please, you must come, please, I need you to come! Fill me, make me yours, please...” This was an order Mario could not disobey even if he had wanted to which he didn't, of course, and he followed his beloved Romeo over the edge, filling Marco's still convulsing rosebud with hot jets of creamy white, making him his in every possible way. They clung to each other and when they came down from their high and shared pleasure, their eyes were filled with their love for each other as they looked at one another.

“No, stay with me, please,” Marco whispered as Mario tried to pull out and the younger one relaxed wrapping his arms tightly around him and kissing him tenderly. “I love you, Marco,” he murmured and his smile took Marco's breath away. “I love you, too, Mario,” he replied, his own smile as sweet and beautiful as Mario's before their lips found each other again.

Marco knew that the forthcoming weeks wouldn't be easy, but he was sure that they would be able to go through all hardships coming up their way. As long as they were together and loved each other, everything would be alright, Marco knew that for sure.


	27. You Are My Tower Of Strength

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erik was blackmailed by Marie and when he came home with Nuri, he became sick. Will Nuri be able to comfort him and make him feel better again?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is all fluffy and romantic again and passionately. I was in the mood for Erik and Nuri today and this chapter almost wrote itself and was finished surprisingly quickly.
> 
> I hope you will enjoy reading about my two lovely and sweet teeange boys as much as I love writing about them. :-) 
> 
> I also want to say thank you to all of you who support me with kudos and comments, they mean more to me than I can tell you!
> 
> Please, keep up your outstanding support my wonderful audience and leave comments and kudos to feed my muse with, because there is nothing more wonderful for every author than knowing that their writing is appreciated and that the hours they spent with writing another chapter weren't wasted. Comments and kudos feed our muses and make us happy! :-)

Nuri slowly made his way back to the living room where Erik was still lying on the couch, careful not to spill the chicken soup he had cooked. It was only an instant soup he had found in the cupboard because a freshly cooked chicken soup would have taken more than three hours and Erik needed the soup now, but, Nuri had chopped a carrot and a small bunch of parsley and cooked them with the soup.

When he entered the living room he could see that Erik was staring blindly at the ceiling, a lost and sad expression on his beautiful features. He was still pale and had dark shadows under his eyes and Nuri's heart clenched with the love and concern he felt for his wonderful boyfriend.

He crossed the room and placed the platter on the ground next to the couch, sitting down beside it with his legs pulled under his backside. Erik's gaze darted in his direction and his pale cheeks flushed with either embarrassment or his joy to see him again, Nuri was not sure, maybe, it was a combination of both of them.

He smiled at Erik, reaching out with his hand, caressing his cold cheek. “Can you sit up, Erik? Eating soup while lying on your back most likely won't work. I could spoon-feed you, of course if you want me to.”

Erik blushed more by the thought of being spoon-feed like a little child and pulled a face, eyeing the bowl with the soup suspiciously. “I don't like chicken soup. My mother always forced me to eat it when I was sick,” he objected and Nuri felt utter relief that the hated soup had revived some of his sweet boyfriend's spirits again.

He couldn't suppress an amused snicker and his chuckle thwarted his attempts to make a strict face. “That's probably because chicken soup is supposed to give you some strength back and make you feel better when you're sick? And I have to tell you that I do feel offended now, Erik. I spent hours with cooking this wonderful soup for you – I was even chasing after a poor chicken and plucked it for you...” he snickered and Erik's eyes widened with horror.

“Oh God, please don't say that, I might get sick again,” he groaned, pushing himself into a somewhat upright position. “Okay, I will eat this chicken soup you cooked for me,” he then agreed defeated, eyeing the bowl again. “And you're a liar, Nuri. This is an instant soup, I can smell it.”

Nuri had expected that Erik would smell the difference and he smiled up at him. “Cooking a real chicken soup would have taken much too long, sweetheart. You need something light to eat now. I will cook a real chicken soup for you someday and you will like it, I promise you.”

Erik smiled back, the first real smile since his breakdown, taking the platter Nuri handed to him. “You can cook a real chicken soup?” he asked, blowing slightly over the steamy liquid in his spoon.

“Of course, I can. You hurt me again, Erik. I told you that I can cook.” He jerked his head in the direction of the bowl and now it was his turn to pull a disgusted face. “This poor attempt of being a real soup might offend your sense of taste as much as it offends mine, but, it was the only thing I could come up with in a proper amount of time and you need it.” For a while he watched Erik eating his soup in silence enjoying the peacefulness of this moment.

After having eaten most of the bowl's contents, Erik lay the spoon beside the bowl, taking Nuri's hand and pressing a chaste kiss on the fingertips. “I have to admit that it is rather delicious, just because you have cooked it for me, Nuri. Thank you. You were right that I needed it and I do feel better. You are my tower of strength, you know that, Nuri, don't you?” he said tenderly and gratefully.

“Yes, I know, sweetheart. I want to be your tower of strength whenever you need me to be it, Erik,” Nuri replied hoarsely, stroking his cheek before he made himself comfortable before the couch again, watching his sweetheart eat the soup he had cooked for him with visible delight and appetite, a happy and contented smile on his handsome face.

 

\-----------------------------------------------

 

Later, they sat at Erik's desktop and Nuri was astonished and happy when he saw how easily Erik went on with his homework. The soup and the tea had brought back some color in his pale cheeks and Nuri finally could praise Erik for his wonderful English test and the grade he had gotten for it.

He had been angry with Marie because of her attempt to blackmail his boyfriend, but right now, he clenched his fists, ready to shake her and yell at her because she had destroyed Erik's pride and joy about his wonderful test and the first good grade he had gotten in months. Erik's cheeks burnt in a wonderful pink while the rest of his face was still pale as he handed his test to Nuri to let him read it, chewing nervously on his lips while he waited for Nuri to finish reading and tell him his opinion.

When he was done, he lowered his hands holding the exercise book down on his lap, smiling at the other teenager. Nuri had known that Erik was very intelligent and only frustrated and demotivated, and that his problems had been due to the fact that he was the little stepbrother of a famous footballer, but he was truly amazed how quickly Erik had found his way back to become a good pupil again and show his mettle. He had fallen in love with the brunette teenager right at first sight when he had laid his eyes on him for the first time and what he had seen in those wonderful hazel-green eyes staring fascinated at him had touched him deeply. Erik was a wonderful boy on the cusp of becoming a grown up man, sensitive, warmhearted, intelligent and interested in so many things, and he was everything one could only wish for having him as their boyfriend.

Of course, it didn't hurt that he was also of an astonishing male beauty, but that hadn't been what had fascinated Nuri so deeply. Nuri had also seen Erik's insecurity, his loneliness and his sadness, the defiance and helpless anger about the way most of the people treated him because he was Mario's relative, and Nuri had felt the strong and overwhelming wish to take him in his arms, show him how special he was and to protect him from the injustice of the world.

Now, he stroked Erik's heated face and placed a gentle kiss on the tip of his nose. Erik sat there kneading his hands in his lap, anxiously waiting for Nuri's judgment about his test.

“This is wonderful Erik, you can be so proud of yourself, you truly outdid yourself. This summary is very, very well written and your English has improved in such a short amount of time, it is amazing, sweetheart. You caught up the essential tidings of what Shakespeare wanted to tell us and I'm sure that Mr. Reus was as happy and amazed about your work as I am. If you'll go on like this, I'm sure you will have thirteen or fourteen points the next time.”

Erik's eyes lit up with joy and happiness and Nuri couldn't help but press his lips on his sweet boyfriend's mouth in a longing kiss. The kiss got more heated quickly, but when Nuri tried to slip with his tongue between the other one's smooth lips, Erik suddenly pulled back from him, turning his head away.

Nuri frowned, not sure what he had done wrong. “Erik? Is everything okay? Are you feeling nauseous again?” he asked concerned.

Erik kneaded his hands again. “No, I'm not. I'm fine. It's only... You must be disgusted... I mean, only two hours ago, I was puking my guts out and if you kissed me right now...” he reluctantly admitted and Nuri smiled with relief.

“Erik, please, look at me,” he asked him gently and Erik shot him a sheepish look from underneath his thick dark-brown eyelashes. This gaze had an immediate effect on the lower regions of Nuri's body and his twitching cock reminded him impatiently of the fact that he was a healthy young man head over heels in love with a wonderful boy, endued with a strong libido that wanted to be satisfied.

“I will never be disgusted by you, Erik. I really thought I had proved that to you. Yes, you were sick, but you rinsed your mouth, you drank tea and you ate my 'delicious' instant chicken soup, so whatever taste might have been in your mouth, it is long gone. Plus, if it wasn't, I wouldn't care about it, at all. For me, you will always taste like the sweet and soft peaches I love so much and I will always enjoy kissing you, no matter what. So, would you please stop worrying about things you don't have to worry about, at all and kiss me instead?”

His words had the desired effect, Erik blushed furiously from his neck to his hairline and he snickered sheepishly and happily, the wonderful laughter Nuri was addicted to. Luckily, they hadn't had much homework to do for the next day and could enjoy the rest of the afternoon in a more pleasurable way. He pulled at Erik's desk chair and kissed him again and this time, the younger one didn't pull away, but let the dark-haired young man claim and explore his mouth, his own tongue mirroring the movements its cheeky and curious counterpart was doing. This time, it was Nuri who had to pull away to catch his breath, his painfully hard erection pressing desperately against his tight jeans.

“We could move this to your bed, sweetheart!” he suggested, still out of breath. “You could lie down to avoid getting dizzy and I could show you how much I love and adore you - unless you're still too sick to do that, that is.”

Erik vigorously shook his head. “No, I'm not too sick, not at all. Yes, bed would be a good idea!” he agreed happily and Nuri pulled him up from his stool, shoving him in the direction of his bed. They kissed and undressed on their way, Nuri forgetting to be gentle with his beloved sweetheart and Erik forgetting his shyness, both of them in the desperate need to feel naked skin and heated flesh under their hands and against their bodies. They kissed with their mouths opened wide as if they tried to eat the other one, teeth clacking and tongues battling for dominance and Erik's hands roaming feverishly over his body made Nuri moan and gasp as he pressed the younger one down on the mattress, crawling on top of him and rubbing his rock-hard spear already wet with pre-come against Erik's flat belly to get the friction he needed so badly.

Erik was as hard as he was and he arched his back into the touch, whimpering softly. Nuri threaded his fingers through the soft brown hair, gently forcing the other boy to cock his head to the side so he would have better access to his vulnerable throat, licking and biting and nibbling his way from one side of Erik's neck to the other side while he rolled his hips against Erik's slim body covered with a thin layer of sweat. When he reached the spot just below Erik's right ear, he closed his teeth and lips around the fragrant skin and began to suck forcefully.

Erik arched his back again, shivering and Nuri could feel the goose bumps all over the arms embracing him tightly. He growled possessively, pleased by the younger one's reaction. Good, he wanted Erik to react this way, to surrender to him unquestioningly and he sucked eagerly, determined to leave his mark visible for everyone on his boyfriend's neck. Erik was his and no one was allowed to touch him or do him any harm, he would see to that.

“Nuri, stop, I will have a hickey there! Everyone will see it tomorrow!” Erik protested, but he didn't try to pull away and his hard cock throbbed in the same rhythm Nuri sucked on his fragrant skin.

“I hope so! Everyone shall know that you are mine and that they better not mess with me, because I will protect what's mine!” Nuri growled, his teeth still holding Erik's skin in their tight grip.

“But, Marie – she will...” Erik said weakly, his hand pressing Nuri's head firmly against his throat betraying his formal protest and giving away his pleasure about being claimed that way rather obviously.

“I don't care about Marie and what she might try, Erik. You're mine and I will make sure that she finally realizes that – she and everybody else.”

Nuri let go of Erik's now deep-purple throat, the spot where he had left his mark right where Erik's pulse was visibly racing underneath the smooth skin throbbing heavily. He looked down at Erik, his face flushed with his arousal, his eyes black rounds, the pupils blown with his desire and his short hair tousled and falling into his forehead.

Erik swallowed audibly by the wonderful sight and pulled him down for another kiss while his other hand wrapped itself shyly around both of their pulsing shafts slick with the creamy wetness their desire for each other had milked from them. Nuri tensed with the effort to hold himself back and not come just from the first touch of Erik's long elegant fingers closing around him and stroking up and down on both of their erections.

Nuri shifted his weight to make it easier for his wonderful boyfriend to get both of them off, his own hand wrapping itself around Erik's hand to help him and show him how fast and hard he liked it. Erik moaned into their passionate kiss as Nuri's tongue mimicked the movements of their hands and the way Erik trembled underneath him, shivering in time to the ups and downs of their fingers told Nuri that his sweetheart was close to his orgasm, very close. His perfect cock grew longer and became even harder than Nuri had thought it possible and he sped up, knowing exactly what Erik needed to come as hard and long as he had never come before.

It took only three more firm and fast strokes and then, Erik was coming all over their hands, his pleasure erupting from his pulsing cock in fast spurts, coating their cocks and hands with creamy white hot wetness again and again.

Erik cried out and his cry tickled Nuri's oversensitive lips, adding to the sensation of Erik spilling his semen against his own achingly hard manhood and after one more second poised on the brink of his own orgasm he fell over the edge right into the bottomless pit of an incredible climax. A low growl fled from his lips as he allowed himself to lose control and let his ecstasy overtake him, shuddering in time to the jets of his forceful release his shooting cock pumped into their sticky and slippery entangled fingers still gliding up and down feverishly and erratically on both of their cocks.

For one long moment, it seemed as if they tried to win a contest who of them had more to give, the wet proof of their complete satisfaction making a complete mess between their sweaty bodies and their hands didn't stop until the pleasurable eruptions finally stopped and they were completely spent, sated and totally exhausted.

Their harsh breathing filled the air and for a while, they just lay there, snuggled close to each other, enjoying the wonderful afterglow of their shared passion.

Eventually, Nuri raised his head, looking Erik deep in his wonderful eyes. “We belong together and I will always be there for you and stand by your side, sweetheart. Don't you ever doubt that. I love you and I will always love you. Plus, I'm happy to be your tower of strength for the rest of our lives,” he whispered, his fingertips caressing his face reverently.

Erik smiled up at him, his eyes shining with the love he felt for the older one. “I love you, too Nuri and I always will. I will never stop loving and needing you,” he whispered back and that was all that mattered to Nuri. The world outside could wait, today, being together here in their own personal heaven was enough.


	28. Two Brothers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mario spent a wonderful day with Marco and Erik's day became better after his return to his home with Nuri. Now, Mario comes home and finds his brother waiting for him, because they really need to have a serious talk...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am in the mood for this story at the moment and I wanted to get over with this chapter. After reading it, you will know the reason why. :-)
> 
> I also want to say thank you to you again, you're the most wonderful audience in the world and it's ah honor and pleasure to write for you!
> 
> For the better understanding: 'Bravo' is a rather well-known magazine for teens about musicians, famous people and other interesting things and 'Dr. Sommer' is a team of trained people answering the readers' questions about sex and love and everything they don't want to ask their parents or friends. It exists for more than fourty years by now. :-)

Mario silently closed the door behind him, frowning when he saw the light shining through the door of the living room. It wasn't that late, but Erik had sounded tired and exhausted when he had called him two hours ago, telling him that he would be home around ten o'clock. He would have preferred to stay longer with Marco, but Marco had agreed with him that he should go home early enough to catch more than only six hours sleep and to give Erik the feeling that he was there for him and didn't spend his nights somewhere else, leaving him alone in their empty and rather big parent's house.

Mario shrugged out of his jacket and put off his shoes, placing them on the newspaper under the heater to dry them before he took his bag and walked over to the door leading into the large living room instead of going downstairs where his own apartment was settled.

Erik had fallen asleep on the couch, already wearing his sleeping clothes and snuggled close under a thick woolen blanket; and Mario stopped in the doorway, musing about if he should carry his brother to his own room, preferable without waking him up if that was possible, but when he saw how pale and sick the teenager looked even in his sleep, he slowly crossed the room, sitting on the edge of the couch and stroking his cool cheek to wake him up. His little brother obviously needed to talk to him and therefore had waited for his brother to come home, and Mario wasn't about to let Erik down when he needed him.

“Shh, Erik, wake up, it's me,” he whispered, his frown deepening when he saw the black shadows under Erik's eyes and the pale-greenish color of his skin.

“M-Mario?” Erik mumbled, still half asleep as he slowly came to again, blinking confused into the dimmed light of the lamp beside the couch.

“Yes, Erik, it's me. What's wrong, little one? You're skin is cold and sweaty and you're almost green all over your face!” Mario gently lifted the boy's head up and shifted his weight until he could lean against the backseat of the couch with Erik's head in his lap.

Erik sighed contentedly, snuggling closer and pressing his face into Mario's tender touch like a little tomcat that wanted to be stroked.

“I was sick after school and I'm still not well,” Erik admitted and Mario was deeply grateful that they were past the time when Erik had lied to him about such things. He started to stroke his soft, fragrant hair and Erik relaxed visibly, closing his eyes with obvious pleasure. A small smile tugged at one corner of Mario's sensitive mouth as he remembered how oftentimes his stepmother had stroked his hair this way when it had been him not feeling well.

“What happened, Erik? Did you catch a flue?” he asked quietly. His first thought had been Nuri, but he had learned not to draw too quick conclusions and speak them out loud without any evidence that they might be true. He wanted Erik to be honest with him, knowing that the young teenager would raise his hackles and tell him nothing if he attacked the young man he was crazy in love with out of the blue.

The movement of Erik shaking his head in his lap tickled his leg and he couldn't suppress his flinch and his snicker that made Erik snicker, too.

“Nah, I don't think so. I guess it was because of what has happened in school today. By the way, I have twelve points in my English test!” he exclaimed excitedly and Mario bent down, pressing a brotherly kiss on his hair. He didn't have to fake joy and surprise because Marco might have told him about Erik's good grade, but to see his little brother's pride and happiness made it easy for Mario to beam at him as if he hadn't known about it before.

“That's great, Erik! That is truly wonderful news, I'm so proud of you!” he praised him, smiling warmly at him while he continued to stroke his hair.

Erik smiled back, happily and a little bit shyly, and his cheeks turned pink by his adored big brother's praise. “Do you really think so?” he asked back. “Don't you think that I should have been better?”

Mario shook his head. “Better? Oh Erik! You had five or six points during the last year and now, you have twelve points! I would have been out of my mind with joy if you had gotten eight or nine points! Shakespeare is a difficult topic and you did wonderfully getting such a good grade! I can't tell you how happy you made me!”

The shy smile on the brunette's face turned into a joyous beam and the pinkness became darker, finally replacing the unhealthy greenish paleness on the brunette's face. “Thank you, Mario!” he said, embracing the older one's waist. “This is only because of Nuri and you! And Mr. Reus. You helped me and believed in me when no one else did, even not me myself.”

“I will always believe in you, Erik. You're my little brother and I love you,” Mario answered sincerely, changing to Erik's sickness again. “But, your wonderful test didn't make you sick, did it?”

Erik sighed. “No, of course not. It was what Marie, one of my classmates tried after the English class,” he said reluctantly. “She threatened to go to Mr. Sahin and tell him that I'm his son's boyfriend if I didn't convince Nuri to learn English with her and him to insist of her being his Juliet.”

Mario froze, his fingers clenching in Erik's soft hair. Erik tensed and tried to pull away from him with a painful whimper. “I knew you would be angry with me, Mario! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to...” he cried out, starting to sob uncontrollably.

Mario flinched startled as he realized that Erik had mistaken his fury about that impudent girl as fury about him and he pulled the struggling and sobbing teenager close, holding him tight and rocking him soothingly.

“Erik, don't! I am sorry. I'm not angry with you, little one, hush,” he murmured. “It's not your fault, you did nothing wrong. Hush, Erik, sh, please, don't cry.” Mario repeated his words like a mantra over and over again and after a while, Erik gave up his struggles to free himself and laid his head on Mario's shoulder, crying his heart out. Mario held him, kissing his hair and stroking his back while rocking him all the while until the younger one calmed down and the sobbing finally faded to silent sniffs.

“Did you tell Marco about her attempt to blackmail you?” he inquired, keeping his voice low and gentle although he was still fuming. Erik had trusted him enough to talk to him and tell him about the extortion and Mario wouldn't risk losing his brother's trust and faith in him by acting stupid and without thinking.

“No, I didn't.” Erik's voice was small and thin and new anger welled up in every cell of Mario's body. He started to rock him again, not only to soothe Erik, but also to calm himself down, laying his chin upon his head.

“Blackmailing someone is a serious crime, Erik. Marco is your class-teacher, he needs to know such things,” he said and Erik nodded his head on his chest. “Yes, I know. Nuri said much the same. I was only so confused and scared! What if Mr. Sahin finds out that I am your brother? What if she really... I don't want to be the reason why you lost your job!”

Mario smiled grimly. “That won't happen, Erik. I had an interesting talk with Mr. Rummenigge today and as it seems, this damn talk show made me some kind of hero again. I'm far too liked and adored by the club's fans to throw me out. Even Mr. Sahin won't be able to change that. Quite the opposite, the public wouldn't take it well if he tried or attacked me again. Apart from that, you are much more important to me than a club that might go over to someone like him quite openly. In that case, I would find another club, Erik.”

“Really?” Erik obviously couldn't believe what Mario had just said.

“Yes, Erik, really. Were you sick because Nuri was angry with you or because Marie blackmailed you?”

Erik groaned. “The second. Nuri wasn't angry with me, at all. When we came here, I made a complete fool of myself by throwing up the minute Nuri had opened the door for me. I was so ashamed and thought he would loathe me or even hate me, but he was wonderful. He held my head and rocked me just like you did and he assured me that I did nothing wrong. He even cooked chicken soup for me!” Erik chuckled weakly by the memory. “Brrr, instant soup, bäh! But, he said a real good chicken soup would take hours to cook and he chopped a carrot into the soup to make it taste better. It actually didn't taste so bad just because he cooked it for me.”

Mario chuckled, too. “Ah yeah, I can see your point. If Marco had done the same for me, I would have eaten it with delight, as well,” he stated dryly.

Erik raised his head, looking at him with amusement sparkling in his eyes. “I thought that Mr. Reus know how to cook? He mentioned something like that? Doesn't he feed you properly?”

“Oh yes, he does know how to cook and he feeds me very properly,” Mario hurried to assure, the memory of what Marco had fed him with in the evening coloring his own cheeks. The blowjob he had given his beloved Romeo had caused the blonde teacher to lose his self-control, completely, and Mario had had a hard time swallowing jet after jet of salty pleasure rushing down his throat as Marco had shaken through his release.

Erik noticed his embarrassment despite the rather dark light and snickered cheerfully before he buried his face on Mario's shoulder again, becoming serious and shy once more all of a sudden.

“M-M-Mario? Can I ask you something?” he mumbled into the soft cashmere wool of Mario's jumper. Mario readied himself for the forthcoming talk, knowing immediately what Erik wanted to ask him and torn between his relief that Erik really trusted him that much to ask him about those things and his discomfort to answer such intimate questions.

“Of course, Erik. You can ask me everything you need to know,” he said, grateful that Erik was too embarrassed himself to look at him. For a while, there was only silence and Mario waited patiently for Erik to find the courage and ask him about – _this_.

“Do... do you... I – I - mean, do you do... it... with him?” Mario was pretty sure that Erik's face was deep red now and the picture in his mind helped him not to wince and flinch because of that actually rather innocent question.

“Yes, Erik, I do,” he said honestly, his voice hoarse and a little bit rough, but firm and calm.

Erik chewed on his next question, Mario could feel his jaw working on his shoulder. He began to stroke the boy's hair again, hoping that it would help Erik to stay as calm and relaxed as it was possible in this special situation. Mario might feel uncomfortable having to have this talk, but he was the only one who could answer Erik's questions, honestly and the thought of Erik having to talk with his father about this topic made Mario shudder with horror.

“Was he your first?” Mario had to strain his ears to understand Erik and he gently placed his hand under the boy's chin to lift his head up. Erik obeyed, but kept his eyes on the neckline of Mario's jumper. “No, Erik, he wasn't. But, he was the first one I really longed to do it with and to answer your next question, yes, I know both ways.”

Erik's cheeks were burning and the brief thought that Nuri certainly wouldn't be able to resist his younger brother if he saw him like this came into his mind. Erik was adorable and so beautiful in this state and Nuri would promise him the moon and the stars to make him happy, Mario was sure about that.

He sighed, knowing that Erik wouldn't like his own question, but Mario needed to know it, nevertheless. “Erik, please, be honest with me. Did he try something? Did he ask you to do it? Look, I was rather young and not ready for it back then when I first did it, and I'd rather don't want you to make the same experience.”

Erik vigorously shook his head. “No, Mario. Nuri did nothing like that. He didn't even mention it. We do more than only kissing, I mean, we...” his voice trailed off and he bit his lips, fighting against new tears that threatened to well up again because of his confusion and embarrassment.

Mario pulled him close. “You really don't have to tell me that, Erik, I know what you mean, believe me. I only need to know if he's making you happy,” he said tenderly, placing another brotherly kiss on his hair.

“Yes, Mario, he does. He really makes me happy. I've never been happier in my life before. And I'm sorry that I am asking you all of this. I don't want to spy on you and Mr. Reus. But, I don't know whom I could ask instead... I'm not the type to write to _'Dr. Sommer'_ from _Bravo_ to ask these questions,” Erik murmured, shyly looking up at his older brother and his last sentence eased the tension lying in the air, making both of them laugh with relief.

“God, no! Not _Bravo_!” Mario groaned, wiping the tears of laughter from his eyes. “It's okay, Erik, really. Truth to be told, I'm glad that you trust me enough to ask me and not a stranger.”

“Is it good, Mario? I mean when you are the one b-b-bottoming?” Erik whispered and Mario smiled melancholy as he remembered his first time and then, his first time with Marco. What a difference had been between his first time and the first time he had bottomed for Marco.

“Yes, Erik, it is good. It is the most wonderful experience you can ever make if he is the right one and if he takes his time and doesn't rush or force you. With Marco, it was that wonderful and I don't think that I could feel the same way with anybody else. It is easier if one you has some experience with it and you should talk with Nuri about it before, Erik, no matter how hard it might seem to be. If you don't, it can cause serious problems.”

“I will talk to him, I promise you. It's just – I love him so much and I'm so afraid that his father will try to separate us. I want him to be my first one and...” Erik sniffed and suppressed another sob.

Mario swallowed, trying to keep his own feelings at bay. Erik needed him to be strong now and he would do everything he could to help him.

“Okay, I will tell you about the 'technical' stuff, the romantic stuff and the feelings come with the situation and your love for each other,” he said, giving his voice a business-like note. “You need condoms and lube to do it.”

Erik flinched, hiding his face on his brother's shoulder again. “I need what?” he stammered. “L-lube? What do you mean?”

Mario groaned inwardly as he realized how innocent his sweet brother still was. “Yes, lube – lubricant. Men don't get wet there like women do, Erik,” he said, his own cheeks burning in the same color as Erik's. “It makes it easier and decreases the friction and the slight burn of – argh – being stretched...”

“I see,” Erik mumbled into the cashmere wool. Mario could feel the heat radiating from his red cheeks and the damp spot Erik's breathing left on his jumper, but, he didn't care. The jumper had been a gift from Ann-Kathrin and although he liked it, he wouldn't die if he couldn't wear it in public again.

“As I told you before, you need to take things slow, especially when you'll do it for the first time. He needs to prepare you with his fingers to loosen you up, stretch you and widen you enough. He should start with one finger first and when you're comfortable with it, then add a second finger and finally a third one.”

Mario had started to stroke Erik's back and he could feel the shivers running over the teenager's spine. “Uh, that doesn't sound – nice...” Erik mumbled, suppressing another shiver.

Mario smiled. “Oh, it is, believe me. You will feel a little bit uncomfortable at first, but if he does it right, moving his fingers the right way and stimulating your – prostrate – you will experience the most wonderful pleasure you never experienced before. It is very sensitive and your climax will be much more intensive than any other you've ever had.”

“Oh, really?” Erik forgot his embarrassment and raised his head again, looking at Mario with big eyes in awe and wonder.

“Yes, Erik. But, he really needs to be gentle, patient and careful. He can't just enter you, this would cause you a lot of pain and discomfort and could hurt you seriously,” Mario repeated, his cheeks still red, but his eyes full of understanding and sincerity.

Erik nodded his head. “I won't forget it, Mario, thank you. And I do believe that Nuri would never do anything that could hurt me.” He wrapped his arms around Mario's neck, embracing him tightly.

“Thank you, Mario. Thank you for being such a wonderful brother. I love you, you know that, right?”

Mario pulled him close, burying his nose in Erik's sleeping shirt and inhaling deeply his beloved little brother's scent. “Yes, Erik, I know that. I love you, too and you're a wonderful brother, as well. I'm so happy that my father met your mother after his divorce from my mother. You are my family and all I want is you to be happy. You can always come to me and talk to me, no matter what it is about,” he whispered and for a while they just sat there, holding each other tight and feeling comforted and happy in the other one's presence.

Erik might be his stepbrother and not share the same blood with him, but for Mario, he was his brother in every sense and meaning of the word just like his other little brother, and Mario was determined to do everything what's necessary to help him and keep him safe and happy, no matter the cost and neither Marie, nor Mr. Sahin would change that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this was one of the most embarrassing chapters I have ever written. I wrote so many times about the things Mario and Erik talked about in a very explicit way and I hardly blush when I write about sex any more. I also think that my explicit chapters are nothing too bad or something to be ashamed about, but this one brought me to my limits. I hadn't thought that writing about two young man talking about sex could be that embarrassing.
> 
> Please, if you liked this chapter and didn't find it as awkward as I fear it might be, give me feedback and leave kudos and comments to show me that I did right somehow!


	29. Who Will Be Your Juliet?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mario and Erik had a serious talk from 'man to man' and Marco had to decide who of his pupils will play the Juliet. He made his decision and has to inform his class about his decision at this gloomy winter morning...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to warn you: this chapter is very edgy and I expect to get very mixed emotions and maybe lose readers because of it. I also had to split it in two halfs because it would have been too long otherwise and it ends with some kind of cliffhanger. I won't apologize for this chapter though, because it is needed and about topics that unfortunately happen oftentimes at schools nowadays, I have three kids in school, I know what I'm talking about.  
> I do hope though that I won't hurt someone's feelings with it seriously, but my stories are about things that happen in real life and I want them to be realistic even though it means that the chapters are emotional roller coasters sometimes.  
> To get feedback in any way would be great and would mean the world to me, because I really want to know your opinion and I also want to say thank you a millions times to all of you who left comments and kudos under the last chapter and telling me that it wasn't as awkward as I feared that it would be.
> 
> You are a wonderful audience and your support is outstanding, it is an honor to write for you!

Marco stepped out of the bus and grabbed his beloved old leather bag tighter, keeping his head lowered because of the sharp and icy cold wind blowing in his face. He was deeply lost in his thoughts, musing about what Mario had told him yesterday late in the evening when they had talked via their smartphones to say good night to each other. He flinched when he felt the soft touch of a strange hand on his arm shaking him out of his considerations.

He looked up, smiling at the pupil standing before him who chewed nervously on their lip. “Mr. Reus? I need to talk to you – privately,” the pupil said uncertainly and Marco smiled reassuringly at the young teenager.

“Of course, we can go to the teacher's room. We will be undisturbed there and you can tell me what's bothering you,” he said friendly and the teenager smiled relieved and nodded hastily their head.

Marco made an inviting gesture to the entrance of the large building. “We will have enough time, there are still fifteen minutes until the gong will announce the first class,” he said, following the pupil heading towards the door now with a sigh. He already suspected what was bothering his pupil that much and he knew that he would have to have a serious talk with his class today. He was surprised how little young people knew these days about such serious things like extortion, mobbing or character assassination. They hunted other kids or even teachers down with their phones and via the internet, posting pictures, films and hateful comments without realizing that they committed crimes, destroyed lives and futures and caused heartbreaking despair and grief with their thoughtless behavior.

Marco had always been lucky that his looks had protected him from being mobbed too badly, but he had known another boy with an high IQ who hadn't been that lucky and who had had to endure a living hell on earth back then in school, just because he had been smarter than most of the other kids. Marco had been his only friend until the other boy had broken up with him, fearing that Marco would have to endure the same as he himself when they stayed friends. Marco had tried to help him as best as he could, but Sascha had finally left his school and started anew in another city with his parents. He had refused to stay in contact with anyone reminding him of the happenings and Marco eventually had accepted and respected his wish with a heavy heart.

Marco sighed again. Yes, today, the English lessons would have to wait until he had talked to his pupils and given them a lesson about the right behavior and what could happen if they mobbed or blackmailed their classmates. Marco knew that it would be hard, but he also knew that he had to do it, no matter what. He was their class teacher and he wouldn't allow something like what Sascha had gone through to happen to one his charges, not as long as he was Marco Reus.

 

\------------------------------------------------------

 

Twenty minutes later, he closed the door of his classroom, walking to his desk while his pupils slowly stopped talking as they got ready for their first class on this gloomy winter morning.

Marco put his bag on his desk and leaned comfortably against the window frame.

“Today, we will talk about our play and who of you will play which role,” he started, suppressing a grim smile, as he had everybody's attention instantly, all of his pupils looking eagerly and expectantly at him, licking nervously their lips as they waited for him to continue.

“First, I will tell you what I have in my mind for the setting,” he continued when he was sure that the teenagers were all hanging on his lips. Marie stared at him with an expression in her eyes that could only be called hungry, but, Marco had noticed the quick glance she had shot at Erik who looked white like snow at the moment, and her glance had been half threatening and half triumphantly.

Marco frowned, angry with himself that he hadn't noticed before how obsessed the pretty girl was with Nuri and her desire to be his Juliet. He had known about her mood changes and her problems in the past, but her parents had assured him that everything was under control and he had been more than happy to believe them. He suppressed a sigh, focusing on the setting of the play again, knowing that he needed to keep a close eye on her as he started to explain which scenery he had in mind for their special Romeo and Juliet.

“I did some research for the costumes and unfortunately, I have to tell you, that we can't afford to lend the costumes of a theater.” He raised his hand in a calming gesture as his pupils started to murmur. “Don't worry. A friend of mine came up with a great idea. You all know what poppers and punks are? I guess that your parents told you a little bit about their 'wild' youth.” He smiled when the teenagers began to snicker, nodding their heads vigorously.

“Yes, I thought so. Juliet's family 'the Capulets' will be the 'popper-family' and Romeo's family 'the Montagues' will be the 'punk-family',” he said and the teenagers began to applaud, shout and whistle because of their excitement.

Marco waited until his class had become silent again, looking at him and he could see who was hoping to get one of the main roles and who was actually afraid to get one of the main roles. Marie of course belonged to the first half while Erik definitely belonged to the second half. Only Nuri wore a stoic mask on his face, already having himself resigned to the fate that he had to play the Romeo several days ago.

Marco smiled as he looked every pupil in their eyes, because he of course had taken care of not 'gifting' someone who was truly afraid of having to play a big role before an audience of at least several hundreds of spectators with one of the main characters.

When the silence stretched and the teenagers began to uncomfortably shifting their weight on their chairs, he finally took pity on them and began to speak again:

“It won't be a surprise to you that Nuri will play the Romeo,” he said, watching the reactions of the teenagers carefully. Most of the girls shot wistful glances at their new classmate while Erik just stared down at his hands, even paler than he had already been before.

“But,” Marco continued to speak, “Romeo is the male main character and so I thought that it would be good to have two Romeos, one as a substitute, and maybe even let both of them play, because we will play the tragedy more than only once or twice.”

The kids applauded again, obviously very pleased that they would be rewarded for putting so much efforts in their new task with more than only one big event.

Marco waited until they went silent once more, announcing the second Romeo with barely hidden amusement. “Our second Romeo will be Matthias.” Erik's head snapped up as he stared at his best friend who simply gaped at his class teacher with a rather stupid expression on his face. “Me? I shall play the Romeo?” the boy finally stammered, his cheeks flushing red.

Marco nodded his head. He was still leaning against the window frame, watching the reactions of Matthias' classmates closely. Marie was pulling a disgusted face while some of the other girls suddenly considered the brown-haired boy with newly awakened interest. “Do you think you can do that, Matthias?” he asked and the teenager beamed at him. “Oh yes, Mr. Reus, I'm sure that I can do that!” he almost shouted, his chest swelling with his pride and happiness.

“Fine.” Marco let his eyes travel over the faces of the other pupils holding their breath every time his gaze lingered on them for one moment and pursed his lips.

“I had a hard time to decide who would be the best for the Juliet.” His words drew shaky and rather loud breaths from every girl and Marco knew that the eyes of all female pupils were no glued to him, but he only watched Erik who had lowered his head again, fiddling with the strap of his school bag with nervous hands.

“I chose two Juliets just like I thought it best to have two Romeo's.” Marco made a short pause, although he knew that he was almost cruel by keeping the teenagers in suspense. “Matthias' Juliet will be – Lisa.”

“Aaahh's!” and “Oooohhhs!” filled the classroom and Lisa had put her hands on her mouth because of her shocked joy and astonishment, her eyes filling with tears of happiness and wonder as she looked at her future 'Romeo' who simply stared back at her, stunned and speechless.

Marco inwardly shook his head as he thought about the tragicomedy before his eyes, Lisa having a crush on Matthias who had a crush on her best friend Marie, blinded by her beauty instead of seeing the treasure Lisa actually was right before his nose. In fact, they could have performed their own play without having to use Shakespeare and Marco was pretty sure that this 'real-life-play' most likely would be as interesting and thrilling as Shakespeare's wonderful tragedy still was after so many centuries that had passed since its first performance.

“Nuri's Juliet,” he spoke up, demanding the teenagers' attention again, “Nuri's Juliet will be – Ewa.”

Suddenly, there was dead silence in the classroom, everyone looking at the Polish girl who had frozen in her seat, her red lips forming an inaudible “Ooohhh!”

Ewa had joined the class after the summer holidays, she was a shy and quiet, but very intelligent young woman, warmhearted and friendly, and she took school more serious than any other of her classmates. Her English was almost as good as Nuri's, but he was the only one who knew that because she only spoke when he called her and it was apparent that no one, Ewa herself at least, had thought that she would play at Nuri's side. She wasn't a stunning beauty as Marie, mostly due to the fact that she never wore makeup, but she had delicate, regular features and Marco was sure that she would be a wonderful Juliet.

Marco smiled friendly at her. “What do you think, Ewa? Do you want to be Nuri's Juliet?” he inquired. The Polish girl with the long brown ponytail shot a quick questioning glance at Erik who had raised his head, staring with a shocked expression on his handsome features at his class teacher.

Marco watched the scene with tensed interest, waiting for Erik's reaction. When the young boy felt Ewa looking at him, his eyes darted in her direction and Marco could see the unspoken conversation between them. After two or three seconds, Erik nodded his head, it was only a tiny movement hardly to see for anybody else, but a small smile tugged at the corner of the girl's mouth as she turned around on Marco. “Yes, Mr. Reus, it would be my pleasure to play the Juliet,” she replied in her smooth voice.

 

\-------------------------------------------------------------

 

It was only then, when a loud scream echoed in the room and Marie sprang up to her feet, her torso bent forward in Erik's direction and her hands balled to tight fists, dark-red all over her face with her fury.

“Noooo! Nooooo!” she screamed hysterically. “I am Nuri's Juliet!! I am the best for this role!! This is all your fault, you little bastard!! I told you what I would do if you didn't convince Nuri to let me be his Juliet! You will regret that!! How could you do that to me?! I hate you!!”

The other pupils stared horrified at the furious girl shaking her fists at Erik and yelling at him without thinking about what she just had admitted out loud.

Erik sat there, frozen in place like a statue, unable to react and Marco knew that he had to do something to stop her raging.

“Marie, stop that immediately!” Marco's sharp voice cut through her high-pitched accusations. “It was not Nuri's decision to make who would become his Juliet. It was only mine and I made that decision before I had an interesting talk with Mr. Götze, Erik's older brother on the phone and with someone who was a witness to what you tried to do to him and talked to me this morning, as well. I would have preferred Erik coming instantly to me after your attempt to blackmail him, but, I understand why he had issues to do that, and I'm relieved that someone else informed me about that serious topic.”

Marie went silent, looking around with wide eyes. “Who was it? Who betrayed me? Was it you, Nuri? To save your 'oh-so-sweet-boyfriend's' little ass? Argh! You two lovebirds make me sick!” she screamed again and a strangled sound escaped Erik's lips as she revealed his and Nuri's secret to the whole class which didn't know what to do in this situation, every pupil just sitting there on their stools, looking scared and deeply worried.

Marco crossed the room with several fast steps, stepping between the girl crazy with rage and anger who was attempting to attack the black-haired teenager only watching her calmly with her balled fists. Marie screamed again and one of her sharp nails left a deep red scratch on Marco's cheek as he caught her wrists. Marie howled, never stopping her wriggling and shouting until Lisa suddenly stood up, slapping her best friend in her face.

“Marie! You have to stop that, please! Everything will be alright again, I promise you! Please, stop! You will get over him, please, Marie!” Lisa begged almost sobbing, her eyes pleading for forgiveness for her slap in Marie's face.

The other girl with the long dark curls wrapped her arms around her and Marie who had gone silent when Lisa had slapped her, buried her face on her shoulder, her desperate sobs the only sounds audible in an otherwise completely silent classroom.


	30. Stand By Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marie had a fit of rage when she heard that she won't be Nuri's Juliet. She revealed Erik's and Nuri's secret and everyone in the class knows that Erik and Nuri are together now. What will happen next?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promised you to not keep you in suspense and here it is, the next part of the happenings in Erik's class. Some of you might be disappointed because of its turn out and because it is pretty fluffy again, but, I do believe that hard feelings, anger, hate and bearing a grudge won't do anything good if you really want to make a new start. I also can assure you that all of this is needed for the happenings in the future and the plotline.  
> I hope you will follow this story to the end and laugh and cry with my beloved four boys, because I do believe that they really deserve it!
> 
> You're the greates and most wonderful audience in the world, thank you so much for your lovely feedback, encouragement, kind words and kudos, you can't imagine how much it means to me. Please, keep up your outstanding support and tell me if you liked this chapter, as well! :-)

For one moment, Marco was as shocked as his pupils, because he really hadn't expected such a reaction from the young girl. He had known about Marie's problems and that she didn't react well if she didn't get what she wanted to have, but he had hardly recognized the hellcat Marie had turned into within the blink of an eye as she had realized that she wouldn't get the role she desired so much.

When he saw his pupils looking frightened and pleadingly at him, he pulled himself together. His class needed him now and he wouldn't let them down by freaking out himself.

“Ewa? Would you please go to the secretary's office and ask Mrs. Mayer to call Marie's parents? They shall meet me here in the classroom, please.” he asked the girl who would be Nuri's Juliet, keeping an eye on Marie standing beside him lost in her misery, because he wanted to be prepared if she became furious again by hearing her rival's name.

The Polish girl stood up nodding her head. “Of course, Mr. Reus,” she said as she headed towards the exit, her long ponytail swaying from one side to the other.

Marco took a deep breath and looked at the form captain of his class. Sven Bender was a level-headed teenager and one of the leaders of the class. Marco knew that the other pupils valued his opinion and that they probably would orientate themselves by Sven's behavior and his opinion.

“Sven, please go to the teacher's room and ask Mr. Hummels to come here. I need someone looking at you while I'll accompany Marie to the sickroom. He should be there because his class starts only in about forty minutes.”

“Yes, Mr. Reus!” Sven sprang to his feet and rushed out of the room, apparently deeply grateful that he could do something to bring things back in order.

“Sarah, please pack Lisa's and Marie's bags, Lisa will stay with Marie in the sickroom until their parents' arrival,” Marco then ordered and the called girl nodded and stood up, walking over to the desk where Lisa and Marie had sat, her eyes darting uncertainly to the two girls who stood beside Marco, Marie still crying her heart out on Lisa's shoulder.

She had just finished packing the bags when the door opened and Mats emerged in the door way, his hair messier than usual. He was slightly out of breath and it was obvious that he had been running to come here as fast as he could. Sven's blond shock of hair appeared only two seconds later, the boy was as out of breath as the teacher, and Marco had to smile because his friend and colleague most likely had won the sudden contest, due to his longer legs and the marathons he ran on a regular basis.

“Mats, I need you to stay with my class while I bring Marie and Lisa to the sickroom,” he said, but the young man with the dark curls shook his head.

“No, Marco, you will stay with your class and I will bring Marie and Lisa to the sickroom and stay there with them until Marie's parents come to pick her up. Sven told me that she had some kind of hysterical fit of rage and I know how to handle that. You can tell me what happened later.”

Marco gifted him with a relieved and grateful smile, because Mats was right, his class, especially Erik and Nuri needed him more than Marie who had Lisa to lean on and he also knew that he could count on Mats to hundred percent.

“Thank you, Mats. That would be great,” he agreed, watching with his pupils Mats leading the still sobbing girl and her best friend out of the classroom. Marie's desperate sobs were audible even a rather long time after the door had closed behind them and no one spoke until the noise finally faded.

Marco flinched when Erik spoke up all of a sudden, he hadn't expected Erik of all people to break the heavy silence, but he admired the young teenager for his courage and his behavior. He wasn't sure how he would have reacted if he had been in Erik's place.

“Did you speak with Mr. Reus, Nuri?” he asked his boyfriend accusingly. His voice was rough and shaky and Marco could hear that the boy was close to tears himself. “I told you that I would speak to him!”

Nuri slowly shook his head, his face full of sorrow and regret. “No, Erik, I didn't speak to Mr. Reus. You told me that you wanted to do that yourself this morning after our English class and I would never have betrayed you like this,” he said silently and sincerely, and Marco of course knew that Nuri had told the truth. He hadn't been the teenager who had come to him before school.

“But who was it then? I didn't tell anybody about Marie's extortion. No one except for my brother...” Erik's voice broke and he lowered his head as his tears began to flow freely over his face.

Nuri jumped to his feet and hurried at his side, crouching down beside Erik's stool. He took his hand and stroked it while Erik cried silently. The door opened again as Ewa came back, sitting down on her stool again and signing at Marco that she had done what he had asked her to do and that Marie's parents were on their way.

Marco nodded gratefully at her and then, looked at the teenager sitting next to Erik. Matthias bit his lip and swallowed audibly, straightening his shoulders as he took a deep breath.

“I was the one, Erik. I talked to Mr. Reus this morning,” he admitted sadly. “I'm sorry, but I had to do it. I heard what she said to you yesterday and I knew that I couldn't let her do this to you.”

Erik's head jerked up as he stared at his best friend. “You? You went to Mr. Reus? But, you're in love with Marie!” he cried out and Matthias smiled melancholy, wiping a single tear from his cheek.

“Yes, I was, Erik and I probably still am. But, I could never just stand there and let her blackmail my best friend, Erik. What she did was wrong and I simply couldn't let her get away with that extortion. I didn't mean to betray you. But, I know you and I thought it best to inform Mr. Reus instead of letting you do it. You're too kind and too good for this world sometimes. You would have found excuses for her behavior and she has to learn that her behavior was a serious criminal act.”

Erik didn't answer, just stared at him, his pale cheeks wet with his tears. Matthias' face fell. “I'm sorry, Erik. I hope you will forgive me some day and not hate me,” he whispered and this finally caused Erik to take his hand and press it.

“Thank you, Matze. You're the best friend I've ever had. Of course, I don't hate you and I'm not angry with you. I only would have preferred to talk to Mr. Reus myself,” he assured him hoarsely and Matthias smiled, returning the pressure of Erik's fingers before he stood up to let Nuri sit down next to his boyfriend. Nuri shot him a grateful look, taking the offered seat, wrapping his arm around Erik's shoulder without caring about his classmates' reaction. Marco was deeply touched and he had a hard time to keep his own self-control and be the strong adult his class needed him to be right now.

Matze went to Nuri's place and sat down there while the other teenagers watched Erik leaning heavily against Nuri's strong frame.

Marco desperately searched for the right words to talk about what had happened when Sven, the form captain broke the awkward and uncomfortable silence with clearing his throat.

He sat opposite the two boys, looking at them with pursed lips and a thoughtful expression on his face.

“So, the two of you are really together? Together how in 'together together'?” he asked, quirking a questioning eyebrow at them, and his voice didn't sound angry or disgusted, only curious and musing.

Erik nodded his head on Nuri's shoulder and the older boy wrapped his arm firmer around the brown-haired teenager, his behavior a clear statement to everyone that he wouldn't allow anybody to hurt the one he loved even more that he already was.

“Yes, Sven, together how in 'together together',” he said quietly, his face grim and determined.

The other pupils held their breath, waiting for their form captain and very much liked classmate's reaction.

Sven slowly nodded his head, pursing his lips. “I see,” he mused thoughtfully and then with a little snort and a shake of his head: “Uh wow, I have to admit that I didn't see that coming. I was pretty blind, I guess.” He nodded again and a mischievous grin formed on his lips. “Nice catch by the way,” he added wryly and Marco wasn't quite sure whom of the two boys he had addressed with his dry remark.

Nuri and Erik seemed to have the same problem, because they both smiled at him, Erik a little bit shakily and deep red all over his face, as they said in perfect unison: “Thank you, Sven!”

The tension faded away by a relieved and sudden burst of laughter as every pupil and even Marco started to laugh and to giggle, all of them more than happy to ease the pain and heavy mood this way. Marco let them laugh, glad that Sven had taken the lead. He might be their teacher and Marco knew that his class loved and adored him, but the words and the opinion of one member of their sworn community would count much more than anything he could ever say or do.

Marco wiped his tears of laughter from his cheeks, smiling lovingly as he watched his charges becoming normal teenagers again instead of the shocked and horrified kids they had been only a couple of minutes ago.

Sven cleared his throat again and his classmates went silent, looking expectantly at their leader. Sven smiled at Erik.

“I want to apologize to you, Erik. I didn't realize how hard it must have been for you being considered only as the famous footballer Mario Götze's little stepbrother. No wonder that you didn't want to have anything to do with us. Matze did the right thing as he went to Mr. Reus and I guess that I speak for the whole class when I say that someone blackmailing and mobbing one of us is nothing I will accept. We are one class and we finally should start to behave like that. I do hope that I will be a better form captain in the future than I have been in the past and you and everybody else can come to me if you have any problems. You have my word that I won't allow anybody to mob, blackmail or treat you bad from now on, neither because you have a boyfriend instead of a girlfriend, nor because of anything else. It is none of anybody else's business whom you are in love with. I know that I didn't show you that, but, I like you and I'm pretty sure that the others like you, too. Matze is perfectly right. You're a kind and nice guy and always willing to give others more than only one chance. I'm not proud of my behavior and I will do my very best to change it. What do you think, Erik? Will _you_ give _us_ another chance and start anew with us?” he asked and Erik wiped his eyes and beamed at the blonde boy.

“Yes, Sven, I'd like that. I really want to start anew,” he said happily and Nuri relaxed thankfully, placing a chaste kiss on Erik's temple. The other kids began to whistle and applaud excitedly and Marco had to wipe his own eyes furtively, not knowing the last time he had been so proud of his class.

He waited until they stopped applauding and said, his voice hoarse with his joy, pride and emotion: “I'm so proud of you, guys, of all of you. You have done great today and I know for sure that something like this will never happen again, at least not in our class.” He paused when he noticed that Matthias wanted to say something. “Yes, Matthias?” he encouraged him friendly to ask his question.

The boy bit his lip, shooting an uncertain gaze at his best friend. “What will happen with Marie? I mean, she threatened to go to Nuri's father and tell him that Erik's is his son's boyfriend. After that talk show, Mr. Sahin certainly wouldn't appreciate that Mario's brother of all people is together with his son – despite the fact that he is a boy, as well, I mean. This could have threatened Mario's career, too and it is actually nothing we can simply forget or pretend that it wasn't so bad after all, but, I'm not sure whether she had realized what she actually wanted to do or not. Will she have to leave our class or even the school itself?” he asked and Marco could see that he felt pretty bad by the thought of having caused so much trouble with his revelation about his chrush's extortion.

Marco sighed. “I have to inform her parents and the director, Matthias. As you said – if she had gone to Nuri's father, Mr. Götze's career could have been damaged, as well.” His throat tightened by the thought of what could have happened if Matthias hadn't been that brave and risked his friendship with Erik and the esteem of the whole class, but he fought hard to not let his own feelings show. No one knew that he was in love with Mario Götze and he wanted it to stay that way. Erik had had enough to endure and he didn't need to worry about his brother's inappropriate relationship with his teacher.

Erik looked at him from underneath his eyelashes as he struggled for words, an almost appraising look, and Marco wasn't sure what went on in the boy's mind. Did he suspect something because he had noticed that his brother talked to him on the phone every evening?

“But, it is up to Erik to decide if he wants her to leave the class and maybe even the school. I don't think that the director will make a decision without listening to what Erik truly wants.”

Erik straightened his shoulders. Nuri watched him with concern, but he let go of him, waiting for what Erik had to say without trying to influence him.

“I don't want her having to leave our school or our class,” the young boy said much to his classmates' surprise. “I think that she deserves a second chance just like Sven has said earlier. We should start anew – all of us and try to make it better. I think she is as lonely and unhappy as I have been and therefore wanted to play the Juliet so badly. Maybe, she could play Romeo's or Juliet's mother? Or her wet nurse? These are big roles, as well! II know that blackmailing is a serious criminal act, but, she was so desperate. I don't think that she feigned that. She was totally out of her mind and I do understand why she is in love with Nuri.”

He looked shyly at his boyfriend, blushing again and Nuri smiled tenderly at him and stroked briefly his cheek. “If that is what you truly want, then I will give her a second chance. But, it will be her last chance, Erik. One more attempt to mob or threaten anyone and she has to take the consequences of her behavior,” the dark-haired young man said and Erik nodded. “This is only fair. One last chance and she has to prove that she is really willing to change her mind and her behavior,” he agreed relieved and Nuri pulled him close again for one short moment. “You are wonderful, you know that, Erik right?”

Erik shrugged his shoulders. “She can't be so bad because Lisa truly likes her, and Lisa is a nice girl. Let's all make a new start and show her that being nice is much more fun than being arrogant and not nice,” he said, looking questioningly at his classmates.

The kids whistled and clapped their hands again, beaming at the young teenager who was willing to forgive Marie and give her a second chance. Marco swallowed, deeply touched. “Thank you, Erik. I'm sure that her parents will be grateful when I tell them that you are willing to let her stay. They should arrive within the next couple of minutes. I have to talk to them and with the director, but, if you're really willing to do that, then Marie will get her second chance, I'm sure about that. Now, I want all of you to think about our play and what we can do to make it a great success. Any suggestions from your side will be welcome. We will skip our German class today and talk about the roles and the setting instead in our next class, and I do believe that it will be wonderful,” he said happily, feeling amazed and touched that his pupils had managed to turn this horrible morning into such a wonderful day.

A knock on the door broke in on his little speech and he crossed the room to open the door. Marie's father stood outside, kneading nervously his hands.

Marco turned around on the form captain and Sven nodded his head as he noticed Marco's questioning gaze. “We will wait here for you and stay silent, Mr. Reus. You can count on us, you have my word on that. Maybe, we can start with talking about the costumes and where we can get the clothes. Marcel is good with drawing and can draw some patterns for us. We learned our lesson and we will behave like the grown ups most of us consider themselves to be. Just go and see to Marie and her parents, please.”

The other pupils nodded their heads in unison and with an honest and serious expression on their faces, and Marco smiled thankfully at them before he left the classroom and closed the door behind him, knowing that he could trust them and count on them, because his class was a true unity now, every pupil standing by the others and all of them taking care of each other just like it should be.

Being a teacher sometimes was a very hard job, especially in his rather young age, but, in moments like these, Marco loved his job, knowing that he had made the right choice. Today, they had made a huge step in the right direction and Marco had never been prouder of his pupils as he was right now. His class was the best class in the world and Marco felt honored that he was the one teaching them.

He smiled reassuringly at the worried father pacing up and down before the classroom, beckoning him to follow him. He walked through the quiet corridors with Marie's father in tow, smiling to himself, because on days like these, being a teacher was the most wonderful job in the world.


	31. Another Unexpected Visitor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erik's class has become a sworn community after the happenings with Marie and Marco wants to reward them with a special hiking day. Mario finds out about his plans during Marco's unexpected visit in his club...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really in the mood for this story and Mario and Marco complained that I had focused on Erik and Nuri instead of them. I promised them some time together outside the bed and to include more football into their fic. Here is what came out. :-)
> 
> I hope you will enjoy their unexpected afternoon together and let me know if you liked it, because your feedback is what keeps me writing this story for you! :-)

Mario cursed silently under his breath as he headed towards the meeting room where the team meeting would take place. His therapist hadn't watched the time and he was one of the last players on their way to the meeting, knowing that Pep Guardiola would shoot him one of his special glances and punish him by asking him questions he simply could not answer before the entire team if he was too late for the meeting.

Luckily, Bastian was as late as he himself and together, they almost ran along the corridor when he suddenly bumped by chance into another person. Two strong arms caught him and when he drew in a deep gasping breath, his senses were overwhelmed by a very familiar and beloved scent. Marco's scent.

Mario's head snapped up and he stared disbelievingly into Marco's wonderful amber-green eyes. “Mar... Mr. Reus! What are you doing here?” he croaked out, not sure if his eyes and his nose were playing tricks on him because of his longing for his beloved boyfriend. He really hadn't expected to see the blond teacher and not-football-fan in the head quarters of his club.

Bastian beside him frowned as he considered the unknown and unexpected visitor. “You know this man, Mario?” he asked mistrustfully. Mario couldn't resent him for his mistrust, there were a lot of crazy fans trying to come close to their beloved heroes every day and Bastian had some bad memories about such incidents which had happened in the past.

“Yes, I know Mr. Reus. He is my brother's class teacher,” he assured Bastian and the other footballer relaxed, considering the young man with newly awakened interest and curiosity now.

His eyes traveled from Marco's eccentric hairdo to his face and further down to his strong-muscled forearms. Marco didn't wear his jacket and he had rolled up the sleeves of his dress shirt due to the warmth in the building. Bastian considered the visible tattoos and checked Marco's lower body regions in a way that Mario could feel the tiny hairs on his back raising, a clear sign that he was jealous all of a sudden, although it was simply ridiculous to be jealous of Bastian of all people.

“You don't look like a teacher. In fact you look more like a footballer yourself. I never had a teacher that young and well-shaped as you are,” the older man said with apparent envy in his voice and Marco's eyes twinkled as he grinned at Bastian, obviously not impressed that he just had met one of Germany's most famous footballers. Mario wasn't sure if Marco actually knew who Basti was, but his beloved boyfriend's next words told him that Marco had meant what he had said as he had assured him that he would support him in the future and that he had done his 'homework'.

“I'll take that as a compliment, Mr. Schweinsteiger,” he thanked him with a mischievous grin that did nothing to calm Mario down and keep his overwhelming desire for him at bay. “But, I can assure you that I am a teacher and I do love my job. Erik Durm is one of my pupils and I'm his English and his German teacher.”

“I see,” Bastian replied, although it was clear to see that he didn't understand anything. “What are you doing here?” he then asked friendly.

Marco's grin deepened as he shot a quick look at Mario. “Organizing the next hiking day with my class. We had to cancel it last September and I wanted to make good for it now. The talk show with Mr. Götze aroused the interest of my pupils and we spent the last two German lessons with discussing what Mr. Sahin and Mr. Götze talked about on TV. Some of my pupils share Mr. Sahin's opinion and I thought it best to show them that footballers work as hard for their money as other people do. I asked the club if it was possible to join a training session and maybe have a close up view into the daily routine of footballers and Mr. Rummenigge invited me today to come here and talk about it.”

Mario just gaped at his clever boyfriend for a few seconds, because neither Erik, nor Marco himself had mentioned anything like this, and he really didn't know what he should think about it, feeling left out in the cold all of a sudden.

Marco smiled apologetically at him as he noticed Mario's frown. “I didn't talk about my intention to anyone because I wasn't sure if we would get an invitation, and I didn't want to arouse any hopes just to have to disappoint my pupils if Mr. Rummenigge had reclined my request,” he said and Mario swallowed and nodded.

“I see,” he said. “I'm surprised that Mr. Rummenigge invited you personally and this right after your call.” Mario watched Marco with narrowed eyes, torn between his happiness to see him and his anger that Marco had done this behind his back.

Marco's expression was too innocent to believe him as he answered nonchalantly: “Uh, I'm not sure, but the information that Mr. Sahin's oldest son and your stepbrother accidentally happen to be my pupils might have slipped out of my mouth as I talked to the secretary – a very friendly and nice woman by the way.”

Marco was all smiles and innocence as he beamed at Bastian and Mario and Mario couldn't be angry with his cheeky boyfriend any longer. He shook his head with a grin and snorted: “Ah, yes, it surely would have helped matters if this information had found its way to Mr. Rummenigge's ears – in case you really were that indiscreet to let it slip out, Mr. Reus, that is.”

Bastian chuckled amused. “I like you, Mr. Reus. I'm sure that Mario's brother is happy to have you as his teacher. So, Nuri Sahin is Erik's classmate? How unfortunate for him.”

Marco's face went blank. “Mr. Sahin junior is a friendly young man who knows how to behave and he works hard for school, Mr. Schweinsteiger,” he said quietly and Bastian raised his hand in a calming gesture.

“I believe you, Mr. Reus. I didn't want to insult your pupil. It would be our pleasure to have your class here and show them the daily life of a hard working footballer,” he assured him and another voice coming from behind confirmed what Mario's teammate had said.

“Yes, Mr. Reus! Mr. Rummenigge just informed me about your wish and we can talk about it later and fix a date. Mr. Götze will show you around after our meeting and accompany you to my office at five o'clock if that would be fine with you?” Pep Guardiola had emerged in the door way to the meeting room and Mario sighed with relief that their trainer wasn't angry with Bastian and him being late for the meeting because of Marco's sudden appearance.

Marco shook the trainer's hand, beaming at him. “This would be perfect, Mr. Guardiola. I have to admit that I am an absolute beginner when it comes to football, I didn't even know who Erik Durm's older stepbrother was only a couple of weeks ago. My pupils certainly know more about football and our beloved Bayern München than I do and I don't want to embarrass too much myself on our hiking day,” he admitted.

Guardiola returned Marco's smile as happily as if Marco had just promised him that they would win the next champions league and Mario found himself speechless again because of what just happened. “It is fixed then. Mario will show you around and explain everything you need to know by a nice cup of coffee in our comfortable cafeteria after our meeting. You can wait here in the visitor's lounge, our meeting will last only half an hour. I will also make sure that you and your class will be invited into our VIP-lounge to one of the next home matches, Mr. Reus,” he said and Marco's smile as he thanked Guardiola for his generosity made Mario's cock harden and twitch. Mario suppressed a frustrated groan, shooting a glance filled with desire and helpless anger at the man who had won his heart and turned his whole life around, hoping that Bastian wouldn't notice his desperate state of need.

“You are too kind, Mr. Guardiola. My pupils will be excited!” Marco said with a bow of his head.

“The visitor's lounge is right there, Mr. Reus. Mario will join you within the next half an hour. Come on guys, we have a meeting!” Mario followed his trainer and his teammate into the meeting room, turning around in the door way again to shoot his very smugly grinning boyfriend a last reproachful glance. Marco only chuckled, winking at him with his left eye and a silent groan escaped Mario's lips before the door finally closed with a dull sound, separating Mario from the man he was crazy in love with and who had caught him completely off guard by his unexpected visit. Focusing on the meeting with the knowledge that Marco was only a few meters away and waiting for him would be a hard task, Mario knew that for sure as he made his way to his usual seat, glad that Bastian left him alone with his thoughts and didn't ask further questions.

Sometimes, being a famous footballer was almost more than he could bear.

 

\-----------------------------------------------------------

 

“I can't believe that you did this!!” Mario hissed through gritted teeth as he sat down opposite Marco on the table in the cafeteria. He had chosen a table near the window front where they would be rather undisturbed.

Marco thoughtfully circled with his spoon in his large mug, although he drank his coffee black without milk or sugar and actually didn't need a spoon. “Did what, Mario?” he asked silently. “Organizing our next hiking day?”

Mario let the sugar drop down into his own mug, watching it sink into the caramel-brown steaming liquid. “You could have asked me, I'm sure that I could have arranged that for you,” he said miserably, not knowing why he felt so hurt that Marco hadn't asked him.

“No, Mario, I couldn't have. I didn't want to take advantage of the fact that we - know each other.” Mario could hear that the blond teacher had wanted to say 'we are boyfriends' but was too cautious to say something like that in public.

“You took advantage of Erik being my little brother,” Mario snapped although he was very aware of the fact that he behaved ridiculous.

Marco clenched his fingers around his spoon to keep himself from taking Mario's hand. “Yes, I might have done that, Mario. But, I would have done that if you were still only Mr. Götze for me, too. Apart from that, Nuri Sahin being my pupil most likely turned the scale and not Erik being your brother. Mr. Rummenigge seems to be very interested in convincing Mr. Sahin that his footballers work as hard as he does and who could be better for this job than his own son in his opinion? Our morning was awful and my pupils went through quite a lot today. I wanted to reward them for being as matured, level-headed and forgiving as they behaved today after Marie's attempt to blackmail Erik was revealed and what could be better than spending a day with their beloved idols? I didn't lie when I said that we talked about the talk show and your speech during the last two German classes and our discussions were heated and passionate. There are a lot of people thinking much the same as Mr. Sahin does and I thought it would be great to show these young people how hard all of you have to work for your success. It also would distract them from their misery a little bit.”

Mario smiled apologetically at his boyfriend. “I'm sorry for being such a dork, Marco,” he murmured. “You are right and I'm actually glad that you managed to organize your hiking day without my help. I was only so surprised when I bumped into you. Was it really that hard today?”

Marco shrugged his shoulders. “You can bump into me as often as you want to,” he snickered before he became serious again.

“Yes, it was hard, Mario. You can't even imagine. Matthias, Erik's best friend came to me before the first class started and told me about the extortion. If you hadn't informed me before, I would have been totally shocked. I had already mused about the effect her behavior could have on you during the entire night and Matthias' words confirmed my determination that I had to do something. But, before I even had the chance to react, Marie became a hellcat as she realized that she wouldn't be Nuri's Juliet. She screamed and tried to attack Erik with her fists.”

His hand came up to his face in an unconscious gesture as he retold the happenings, his fingers stroking over the red scratch on his cheek. Mario swallowed, his longing to caress the deep red cut making it hard for him to breathe properly. Of course, he had seen the scratch right after he had collided with his boyfriend, but he couldn't touch the young teacher there without revealing their relationship.

“The kids were great, Mario. Marie told them that Erik and Nuri are – hm – more than friends and they behaved as if this wasn't a big deal. Sven, the form captain took the lead and they became a true sworn community, determined to stick together 'in good times and in bad times'. And your brother! You can be so proud of him! He is willing to give Marie a second chance and he handled everything pretty well for all he had to endure during the last weeks. I had a serious talk with Marie's father and he promised me that they would see to Marie making a therapy to get her mood changes under control and her fits of rage and to talk to her and watch her in the future. It will be her last chance and maybe, she learned her lesson. I'm not so sure, but if Erik is willing to give her that chance, then I am willing to do that, as well.”

Mario smiled at him, sipping from his coffee to hide his feelings, pulling a face as he burnt his tongue. For a while, they sat there in silence, thinking about the happenings of the day. Finally, Marco broke the heavy silence. “It is wonderful to sit here and drink coffee with you, Mario. I miss doing all of these small things with you.”

Mario smiled sadly. “Yes, I know, Marco. I miss them, too, believe me. But, there is nothing I can do at the moment to change that.”

“I know, Mario. I didn't say that to make you a bad conscience. But, I'm really looking forward to our hiking day and to spend some 'official' time with you. I know that I will have to call you 'Mr. Götze' all the time, but, I'm willing to pay this small price if I'm able to share your daily work with you and to learn more about the things that are important to you.”

Mario cautiously looked around if anybody was watching them and when he was sure that no one was looking at them, he took Marco's hand and pressed it, stroking with his fingers over his palm before he drew back again. “Yes, this would make me happy, too, Marco. I do want to show you my working place after knowing yours. Will you come to our match on Tuesday?”

Marco nodded his head. “Yes, Mario, I will come. Nothing could keep me away from it. I will scream my throat sore to whoop you and even wear a scarf. Marcel, the friend I told you about will come, as well. He bought the tickets, so I don't have to use the tickets of your parents. I want to be a part of the atmosphere in the stadium. I will be more than happy to accept the VIP-lounge when I come with the class, but I want to watch my first match ever in a stadium among the 'normal' fans. Erik will be with us and we will eat sausages, drink coke and scream with the others, just like all of the thousands of football fans do every weekend.”

Mario's eyes became wet by his boyfriend's tender words. “I would love that. I only can't promise that I will be on the pitch the entire time.”

“I know. Marcel threatened to teach me the rules during the game, so I probably will be occupied with digesting all of this new information. Apart from that, I intend to become a visitor on a regular basis and will be able to watch you play more than only once.” Marco chuckled and Mario grinned from ear to ear.

“Ah, what a pity. I would like to be there as a little mouse and listen to your friend's 'lessons',” he snickered, sipping from his coffee again. “And I do hope that you will come to our matches on a regular basis in the future.”

Marco's eyes told him how much he loved him as he answered tenderly: “You can bet that I will do it. I will become your biggest fan!” and Mario swallowed, deeply touched and happy that Marco was willing to share his passion for football just like he shared the teacher's passion for Shakespeare.

The next minutes, they sat there, drinking their coffee and talking about everything that came into their minds. Mario explained him the basic rules of football and what they did during their training, and when it was time for Marco's meeting with Pep Guardiola, Mario accompanied him to his trainer's office, knowing that he would see his beloved teacher in the evening again, being able to share kisses with him and show him how much he loved him without having to fear that someone would see them.

For now, it was enough that they had done what 'normal' couples did all of the time without realizing how precious those 'normal' things actually were, sitting in a nice cafe or a cafeteria, drinking coffee together and talking about their jobs. Mario knew that they wouldn't get another chance so soon again and when he left Marco to drive home before he would visit him in the evening, a small wistful smile tugged on the corners of his mouth. It hurt that he had to hide his love for this wonderful man, but Mario would keep up his hope that perhaps one day, he could live with Marco openly without fear and hiding in the shadows.

Miracles happened from time to time, and maybe, the miracle that the world would accept his love for another man would happen one day, too – he only had to believe in it.


	32. How Do I Become A Proper Football Fan?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco will be at the stadium for the first time in his life, watching his beloved Mario play football. It is a fine thing that his best friend is there, helping him to become a proper football fan, isn't it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was in the mood for something funny and I hope that I succeeded. I have to admit that I am not a real Bayern München fan, my heart beats for yellow and black, and therefore, Nuri will be a BVB fan. I go with the finished season and the match Marco is watching was the 19th day on a Tuesday against Schalke with Mario replaced by Dante after 27 minutes. I had to use this match to go on with my timeline, the match with his class in the VIP lounge will be a better one for München.
> 
> You are such a great audience and I can't thank you enough for your wonderful support and feedback, we're heading towards the 500 kudos and comments and so so many hits, your absolutely awesome! Please, keep up your wonderful support, it means more to me than I can express in words! 
> 
> Have fun reading this chapter, I had fun writing it! :-)

“Do I really have to wear – THIS?” Marco eyed the clothing in question suspiciously.

His friend Marcel grinned from ear to ear and his grin could only be called malicious, at least in Marco's opinion. “Yes, yes, and totally yes! You were the one telling me that you promised one special person to wear it,” he stated, unimpressed by Marco's pleading puppy eyes and his whining.

Marco let out another very whining protest. “I did, but I thought of something – urgh – less big and long and – red? Where the hell did you get this from? It is the biggest and longest and...”

“And reddest scarf you've ever seen, I know, Marco. And it cost quite a thing, if I'm allowed to say that. It is an original scarf from the internet shop of the FCB. I bought it when you told me whom you managed to persuade that you are the right one for him. Which I truly have to doubt at the moment!” Marcel told him off, letting the obscene clothing sway forth and back before Marco's scared face. He obviously was enjoying his best friend's horror as the blond teacher followed the huge scarf swinging from left to right and back before his nose with his eyes as if he were Marcel's patient who needed to be hypnotized and Marcel were the doctor who was supposed to put him into this strange state where one would answer all questions being asked and suddenly remember things that had happened centuries ago.

“Replace 'reddest' with 'ugliest' and you know what I actually wanted to say!” Marco snapped, forcing his eyes away from the scarf that seemed to become longer and bigger with every second that passed, as impossible as it might seem to be and staring accusingly at his best friend. “When I promised Mario that I would wear a scarf for him, I thought of something less jazzy and brash! I will drown in this – thing – it will choke me like a big python! You can't expect me to wear this – this - snake - in public!”

Marcel raised an eyebrow at him, making a strict face. Marco flinched because he hated it when Marcel got into that special mode, knowing that he never stood a chance of not obeying his orders and doing what Marcel wanted him to do. “Don't look at me like that!” he tried nonetheless, stepping away from the very big, very long and very red woolen snake threatening to wrap itself around his poor throat and choke him until his face would be as red as the scarf was.

“Marco Reus! Stop behaving that childish! It is only an innocent and not dangerous at all scarf. Admittedly a big and long, but also very soft and cozy scarf that will warm you very nicely during the match and also show that you are whooping the right team, the team of your boyfriend! You want to become a proper football fan? Then you will wear this scarf tonight!” His friend put his left hand on his hips, reaching out with his right one holding the scarf in an impatient and demanding gesture as if he wanted to stuff it in Marco's mouth if the blond didn't obey his order within the next minute.

Marco eyed the scarf again, then looked at Marcel, hoping that his pleading glance would have any effect on his best friend. Marcel only scowled at him, narrowing his eyes and pursing his lips and Marco knew better than to annoy him further, because the worst scenario Marco could imagine was Marcel not going with him to the match tonight, and Marco feared nothing more than having to go the stadium alone and without him for the first time in his life.

“I hate you,” he groused, taking the hated and yet so innocent garment with his fingertips as if he feared that it would burn his hand.

Marcel grinned. “No, you don't, Marco. You love me because I am your best friend and know how to make a proper football fan out of you with this wonderful scarf. A football fan who is worthy to be the beloved boyfriend of the one famous and very good looking young star footballer who made us world champions and who expects you to support him as much as he supports you!”

“Hrmpf!!!” Marco slumped his shoulders as he allowed Marcel to wrap the scarf around his neck several times, heating up in the warm flat immediately because of the woolen heater now enclosing tightly his throat. He turned around, eyeing himself critically in the mirror. “I still hate you!” His face had become red because of the sudden warmth and little drops of sweat started to form on his forehead, threatening to ruin his hairdo. “I will never be able to hide this – thing – under my jacket!” he complained, staring horrified at his reflection in the mirror.

“You are not supposed to hide this wonderful fan item _under_ your jacket, Marco! You are supposed to wear it _over_ your jacket and show everyone in the stadium that you are on the winners' side!”

“Everybody will laugh at me!” Marco tried to remove the scratchy wool from his poor neck, only to be stopped by Marcel's hand grabbing his wrist. “Do you want to go alone there? With two - hm – teenage boys?”

Marco flinched again, this time by the thought of being alone in the stadium with Erik and Nuri. Marcel knew that Erik and Nuri were a couple, Marco had told him that to avoid awkward situations, but Marcel had promised him that he wouldn't tell it to anybody else and his friend always kept the promises he made. He also knew that Nuri's father was the most important new sponsor of the FCB and he had suggested that Marco should have a 'final rehearsal' before he would watch a match with his class in the stadium and before the hiking day next week. Mario had agreed with Marco when he had told him about Marcel's idea that it seemed to be a good idea to have this 'final rehearsal' with Mario's brother and the sponsor's son, but, Marco really didn't want go to the stadium for the first time in his life without his best friend's help but two teenage boys crazy in love. He really wasn't sure if he would be able to handle this on his own.

“No, no, I don't want that. Marcel, please, you can't do that to me!” he pleaded miserably, but Marcel only snorted. “So, you will be a good boy and wear this scarf for your boyfriend?” he asked strictly and Marco hurried to nod his head. “I promise you. I wear it over my jacket and I will whoop and listen to you and...but it's warm here, can I please only wear it when we leave the house?” he added subdued, tugging at the scarf again.

Marcel considered the blond's now red and sweaty face. “You may remove it until we leave,” he finally said graciously.

Marco unwrapped the big fan item gratefully from his neck, wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. “Will you wear a scarf, too, Marcel?” he then asked, starting off towards the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water.

Marcel strolled after him, and his grin turned into malicious again. “Me? No. Why should I? Is he your boyfriend or mine, Marco?”

His smug words sealed the fate of the poor glass slipping out of Marco's hand and shattering into a million sharp pieces in a puddle of water on Marco's freshly cleaned kitchen floor.

 

\----------------------------------------------------

 

“Woohoo! Nice scarf! You're supporting the right team!” the steward controlling their tickets remarked excitedly, pulling an amused snicker from two teenage throats and a smug bleating chuckle from the young man who was responsible for Marco wearing said 'nice scarf' visible for everyone with functioning eyes in their heads from a distance of at least fifty meters.

 _'Thank God for the small mercy of letting February nights be dark enough to hide my face from most of the people,'_ Marco only thought while he gifted the steward with a sugary and totally not honest smile. “Thank you. I hope that – urgh we - will win tonight,” he thanked the poor man not knowing that he had just rubbed salt into an open wound, awkwardly, pulling another malicious bleating chuckle from his tonight very annoying best friend. He shot him a hurt look, but Marcel only grinned, ushering him through the crowd to their seats, Erik and Nuri in tow.

“You two will warm our seats and Nuri and I will see to beer, coke and brats,” Marcel ordered and Marco was relieved that he could just sit down for a while and bring his thoughts back in order before the match would start.

They had picked up Erik and Nuri from Erik's house half an hour ago and decided to take Marcel's car instead of the metro, and Marcel of course, had found a parking lot near the stadium. Marco didn't know how he did that, but Marcel always found a parking lot right where he wanted to park. The had walked from there to the stadium and Marco would rather die than confess it to his smug friend, but the scarf had really warmed him and Marco was glad that he could pull it over his cold ears. If it only wasn't as big and as red as it was, the blue in the giant logo upon the wool boosting the red even more. No one looking at him could miss that it was a 1. FC Bayern München fan scarf and Marco felt his cheeks reddening in the same color whenever he noticed someone gazing at him.

Erik's soft voice broke in on his embarrassment and Marco focused his attention on his pupil who looked at him with sparkling eyes and red cheeks. Marco felt brotherly love rising in his guts, just as if he was his true brother-in-law as he looked at the teenager and for one moment, he wished that Erik knew about his relationship with his adored older brother. But, Erik only knew that Mario had agreed to let Erik go to the stadium with him for the 'final rehearsal', although it was a Tuesday and Erik had to be fit for school the next day; and Marco really couldn't tell the young boy that he was much more for his brother while sitting on a bench in the Arena right before a match and surrounded by a bunch of other fans.

“Thank you, Mr. Reus, for convincing my brother to let me go to the match with you tonight. He would never have let me go here on my own. I do like it in VIP lounge, but it is much more fun to be among the other 'normal' fans,” the young boy thanked him and Marco clenched his hand into a fist to keep himself from ruffling the boy's hair affectionately. He was very aware of the fact that a lot of people would misinterpret such a gesture as something it wasn't at all. “And for letting Nuri join us,” Erik added sheepishly, his cheeks burning in a sweet pink as he spoke out loud his boyfriend's name.

Marco smiled at him. “You're very welcome, Erik. Besides, I have to thank you for coming with me and making sure that I won't make a complete fool out of myself. It is my first time in a stadium and I have no clue what I am supposed to do here,” he said, shrugging his shoulders in a sheepish manner.

Erik grinned mischievously at his adored teacher. “The scarf is a good start,” he snickered. “Although it is very – hm – long? A smaller one would have worked for the start very nicely, as well.”

Marco groaned. “I'll kill Marcel, I'll really do!” he groused, but snapped his mouth shut as he saw Marcel and Nuri returning, their hands and arms filled with huge mugs and deliciously smelling brats. He really didn't want to risk to not get one of the sausages and a bottle with beer just because he had said something against Marcel's gift.

“Did you just say anything about your neck-warmer?” Marcel asked him innocently and Marco managed something that probably could be considered as a faked smile. “No, no, not at all!” the blond hurried to assure his friend. “I only thanked Erik for joining us and keeping me from making a fool out of myself. The same goes for you, Nuri. You visited a stadium before, didn't you?”

Nuri pursed his lips, shooting his boyfriend a challenging look. “Yes, I did, on a regular basis. In Dortmund. I am a bee when it comes to football. A total bee. The BVB is the one and only club in the world worthy to be on top,” he stated, grinning all over his face as Erik let out an indignant yelp.

“You're mean, you know that, right? How can you say this here in this stadium? Oh, you – you!” he stammered, obviously feeling truly offended because of what the dark-haired teenager had said, and after a quick glance at the other fans surrounding them, Nuri briefly stroked his boyfriend's burning cheek. “I know, sweetheart,” he whispered into the younger boy's ear. “But, you love me anyway.”

Erik growled at that, crossing his arms before his chest, pouting. “Your beloved BVB isn't on top, you know that, right?”

“Yeah, I know.” Nuri looked sad all of a sudden and Erik bit his lip, pressing the older boy's hand for a short moment. “I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you,” he apologized subdued and Nuri smiled weakly at him.

Marcel took matters in his own hand by offering the drinks and sausages and his distraction worked well, both of the teenagers smiling in pure bliss after the first bite. Marco took the bratwurst his friend handed him and the bottle with the beer, making himself comfortable on his seat to enjoy his first match in the famous Arena and whoop his wonderful boyfriend. He pulled the scarf firmer around his neck, scowling at Marcel as his friend chuckled knowingly, and when the teams entered the Arena, Marco found himself shouting and whistling with the other fans as if he had done it countless times before, becoming suddenly the most natural thing in the world to do.

Maybe, it was, because it didn't happen all days that one became the boyfriend of one of the most famous and talented footballers, and Marco was determined to become the best football fan for the love of his life. The huge scarf wrapped around his neck, warming him very nicely in the cold winter night surely was a good start to reach his goal, and Marco smiled as he stroked over the soft wool, suddenly not feeling embarrassed any longer, at all. Maybe, Mario would see his long and big and red scarf and know that Marco was there, whooping him; and this certainly was worth wearing it, no matter, how big and long and red it actually was.

 

\------------------------------------------------------------

 

“I can't believe it! Mario will so be pissed off!” Erik whined as they drove back to his home after the match. He sat in the back seat with Nuri beside him trying to console him, because the match hadn't turned out the way all of the four had hoped it would be. The Bayern player had been decimated after the red card for Jerome Boateng and the trainer had decided to replace Mario with Dante in the 27th minute.

Even from the distance, the four visitors had been able to see that Mario was disappointed and angry because he had wanted to play ninety minutes knowing that Marco was in the stadium for the first time. He had said nothing, but Marco had felt as disappointed as Mario must have felt, his joy about his first match completely gone. Erik had been so angry that he had almost cried, and only the knowledge that they were in public and Nuri's hand pressing his own in understanding had kept him from letting out all of his frustration.

Marcel smiled reassuringly at him in the rear-view mirror. “I'm sure that he will get over it, Erik,” Marco's best friend told him. “Your brother is a great player and a professional and he knows that you need a good defense being only ten players.”

Marco who had watched the two boys in the mirror, as well, relaxed when he saw the young boy finally smiling again. “You're right, Mr. Fornell, thank you,” he mumbled, leaning against Nuri's shoulder. Marcel's smile deepened. “I told you to call me Marcel, Erik. I'm not your teacher and I'm not that old to be comfortable with being called 'Mr. Fornell' by you or Nuri.”

“Thank you, Marcel, I'd like that,” Erik admitted happily, and for one moment, Marco envied his friend. He wanted to be called 'Marco' by Mario's brother and not 'Mr. Reus', but he knew that it wasn't possible and there was nothing he could do about it. Erik didn't know that Mario was in love with his teacher and Marco didn't want to risk driving a wedge between Mario and his younger stepbrother. Maybe, the day would come when they could tell Erik, but today wasn't the day and Marco leaned back in his seat while Marcel drove them through the nightly city, taking his smartphone out of his pocket as it started to vibrate.

 _'Hello my beloved Romeo. I saw your wonderful scarf, it really wasn't to dismiss.☺ Thank you for being there and whooping us. ILY, M,☺'_ he read the message and he couldn't suppress the huge and stupid grin spreading out all over his face.

 _'Hello my sweet Julian. I wore it only for you and I will always whoop you. ILY, too, M ☺,'_ he typed back, still grinning like an idiot.

 _'See you tomorrow. Good night! ♥'_ Came the quick reply and Marco typed his own goodnight, knowing that Mario would be too busied with consoling Erik and when he came home to call him, but that was okay with him. It was in the middle of the week and he had to get up early the next day and be well-rested for school so he would have to go to bed when he came home, too.

 _'Good night, sleep well, ILY ♥,'_ he texted, pressing the send-button with a happy sigh.

Marcel shot him an appraising look as he noticed Marco's wide grin, but he said nothing, only patted his thigh with a smile as Marco pointed at his phone and then at the scarf he still wore.

The happy and wistful soft moan coming from the backseat told him that Nuri had been able to console his disappointed boyfriend, and he snuggled contentedly in his own seat, closing his eyes and pressing a chaste kiss on the soft red wool of the former so hated and now loved clothing.

The last coherent thought before he dozed off was that becoming the biggest football fan for the man he loved more than anything else hadn't been as hard as he had thought it would be, and that from now on, he would wear the very long, very big and very red scarf with pride and joy, because making Mario happy was truly worth everything even wearing a FC Bayern München scarf.


	33. I Want It To Be You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erik is determined to sleep with Nuri because he wants him to be his first man. He only has to convince his brother to let him stay alone at their house again. How will Mario react when he learns about Erik's wish and what will happen when he is alone with Nuri?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is a shorter chapter, but I wanted to post it today and Erik's first time with Nuri deserves its own special chapter. Erik has another 'talk' with his brother and has to tell Nuri what he wants, which took me more than 2000 words, so it is okay to split the events of that night in two chapters, I guess.
> 
> Have fun reading the new chapter of one of my favorite stories to write and please, let me know if you liked it, leave kudos and comments to feed my muse!
> 
> 'DM' means : 'Drogerie Markt' = drugstore and is the biggest drugstore chain in Germany. :-)

Mario looked at his little brother, worrying his lip with his teeth as he tried to come to a decision.

Erik's hazel-green eyes looked back at him with a pleading expression. “Mario, please! I won't get into trouble, I promise you! I stayed at home without you before and nothing happened!”

Mario sighed, ruffling the younger boy's hair. “Yes, Erik, I know. But, that was before we had this _talk_. I'm pretty sure that I know the reason why you want to stay at home while I'm playing in Stuttgart instead of staying at Matze's place.”

His stepbrother blushed furiously, biting his lip like his older brother had done it just one minute ago. “Mario, please. I know what I'm doing. I – I went to DM yesterday and bought what you told me we would need...” Erik's voice trailed of and he stared at his feet, his face burning in such an astonishing purple red like Mario had never seen him blushing before.

He sighed again, swallowing against the lump in his throat as his love for his younger stepbrother overwhelmed him once more. “Alright, Erik. But, you have to promise me that you will tell him to stop in case you don't want anything he might do to you to happen, please.”

Erik looked at him from underneath his eyelashes, still deep red, but with a shy smile. “I promise you, big brother!” he said with a little shout of joy in his voice. Mario found himself sighing again, suddenly feeling very, very old. His understanding for his parents' wish to have a life on their own apart from raising children increased with every passing minute. This was simply... awkward, embarrassing, straining. He blinked, asking himself not for the first time how he had gotten into this. He loved his brother, he really loved him, but the weight of responsibility pressing down on his shoulders was almost to much to bear. What if something happened to his still minor brother while he was away in Stuttgart? Of course, he could take the next plane to get back to Munich, but still...

“Are you sure that Nuri will stop if you ask him to?” he inquired warily after a short time of heavy silence, and Erik now raised his head and nodded vigorously. “Yes, Mario, I am sure. He would never do anything that could hurt me. I know that for sure.” He looked so convinced about that that Mario simply had to believe him.

He chewed on his lip again, considering his options. He could forbid his brother to stay alone, but he also knew that Erik would find another way and opportunity to sleep with Nuri, and Mario preferred Erik being safe at home when he gave himself to another man for the first time instead of forcing him to search for a place that surely wouldn't be as safe and undisturbed.

“Okay. You'll have the run of the house Friday night. And to make sure that you will have the needed items which will truly work, I will give you what I normally use when it comes to - this. I'm proud of you that you went to DM and bought these things, but, I'd prefer you to use what I know will be the best for what you want to do. And not without rubber, Erik!” he finally said, gazing strictly at his baby brother. Erik beamed happily at him, looking not so young and childlike any more all of a sudden. When did he have become that matured and grown up? Mario sighed for the fourth time within five minutes.

“Sure thing, Mario. And thank you. I couldn't go to – hm – such a place, they want to see the identity card and via internet... I wasn't sure whether I would get the parcel in time or not...” The teenager admitted and Mario felt another wave of brotherly love coursing through him.

“You did the right thing,” he assured him gently, grinning mischievously to ease the awkward tension lying in the air a little bit. “Lucky you having an older brother who can provide you with what you'll need. Just imagine you would have asked mom or dad!”

The boy's eyes widened in horror. “Urgh!! Oh my God, no, I'd rather not imagine that!” he emphasized shuddering with disgust. Mario snickered, but when Erik shot him a challenging look, it was him blushing and shuddering. “I could always ask Mr. Reus. I'm sure that he knows a lot about these things!” his cheeky little brother drawled, pursing his lips.

“You will do no such thing or you'll have to stay at Matze's place Friday night!” Mario threatened in a growling voice, the image of Erik asking Marco about sex disturbing him more than he would have thought.

“Don't worry, big brother, I would never do that. After all, he is my teacher. A pretty cool teacher, I have to admit. There are a lot of pupils having a crush on him...”

“Erik Durm!!!”

Erik flinched, ducking his head, because his brother called him by his family name only when he was truly upset. “Are you jealous, Mario?” he asked incredulously as he noticed Mario's hurt look. “You don't have to be. I'm sure that he is crazy for you and apart from that, he would never start anything with one of his charges. Just remember the scarf Mr. Reus wore for you and only for you. He didn't say that, of course, but he felt pretty uncomfortable and embarrassed the entire time. I'm sure he did it only for you. He was never into football and really tries hard to become a proper football fan just because he loves you so much,” he consoled his brother, wrapping his arms around him and rubbing his back in soothing circles.

Mario – sighed. “I know, Erik. I remember him telling me off about my late arrival, having no clue who I was, and it was really refreshing somehow, being only Mario, your brother, and not Götze, the rising star at the football sky. I know that he loves me. Hm, really that much pupils? He is a handsome, isn't he?”

Erik grinned at him. “Not as handsome as Nuri, but almost,” he said, avoiding his brother's offended dig in his ribs just in time. Then, he became serious again, pressing his brother close once more. He buried his nose in Mario's shirt. “Thank you, Mario. Thank you for being such a wonderful brother and for understanding how I feel. We will be careful, I promise you.”

Mario returned the embrace, placing a chaste kiss on the brown hair tickling his nose. “I trust you, Erik and I do hope that you will have a wonderful first time.”

Erik smiled up at him, his own love for his brother and his idol clear to see in his eyes. “Thank you, Mario. I love you, big brother, you know that, right?”

“Yes, Erik, I know that. I love you, too.”

 

\------------------------------------------------------

 

“Missed you so!” Erik wrapped his arms around the dark-haired boy, melting against Nuri's strong frame. The other teenager chuckled tenderly, rocking his boyfriend in his arms. “It has been only four hours?” he murmured amused, kissing the warm skin at Erik's temple.

Erik pulled back, scowling at him. “That was an eternity! Didn't you miss me?”

Nuri pulled him in for a passionate kiss, exploring the tempting mouth of the one who had stolen his heart right at first sight thoroughly. When they had to part for air, he smiled, kissing Erik's nose. “Of course, I missed you, sweetheart. Don't you doubt that. Even more, because my father gave me a harangue about my duties as his heir again.”

“Oh. I'm sorry,” Erik said, casting his eyes down. If Mr. Sahin knew about who Nuri's boyfriend was, they all would have to live a life like in a living hell on earth, Erik was sure about that.

Nuri stroked his cheek. “Don't worry about that tonight, sweetheart,” he whispered, kissing the younger once again with overwhelming passion. “Tonight, there will be only you and me and no one else, so don't let us waste one single second with talking about my father. Do you think that you can do that?”

Erik beamed at the astonishing young man who had caught his heart and whom he loved so much that he wanted him to be his first man. “Yes, I can do that. Come in, I cooked for us!”

Nuri made a purring sound deep in his throat and his stomach growled clearly interested in the promised food, and both laughed as Erik pulled his boyfriend along the corridor, two carefree boys crazy in love and looking forward to spend the evening and the night together.

 

\------------------------------------------------------

 

“Love you, love you so much!” Nuri whispered into his ear as they lay on Erik's bed later on, being sated and eager to feel each other as close as possible, their minds clouded with the longing and ardor they felt for each other.

Nuri had praised his cooking skills once more and emptied his plate until there had been not one crumb left. Afterwards, they had cleaned the kitchen together and played a stupid game on the play station before Nuri had started kissing him. Kissing was much more interesting and appealing than playing silly games on the console and soon, they had found themselves stumbling in the direction of Erik's room with their mouths glued to each other and their tongues battling tenderly for dominance.

And now, they lay here on his bed, half naked, and all Erik could think of was that this would be _the_ night. The night he would hopefully lose his virginity and make love to the love of his life for the first time.

“Love you, too!” he whispered back, gently pushing against the other boy lying on top of him and busied with nibbling at his ear lobe to get his attention.

“Nuri?” Nuri made one of those wonderful purring sounds again, too distracted by his task of licking over the salty skin at Erik's throat to pay attention to his boyfriend's attempts to talk to him. Erik was rock hard, his poor cock still trapped in the tight prison of his jeans desperately searching for a way out of the offending garment pressing it firmly in place.

“Nuri?” He pushed against Nuri's broadly built shoulders, finally making him pull away and looking at him. His wonderful brown eyes were blown with his own arousal and Erik's cock twitched again, complaining about still being trapped very forcefully.

“What's wrong, sweetheart? Did I hurt you?” The other boy asked worried and Erik hurried to shake his head. “No, you didn't hurt me, Nuri. I – I only wanted to tell you something.”

“You can tell me everything, sweetheart.” Nuri shifted his weight until he lay next to him, watching him attentively. Erik took a deep breath, clearing his throat.

“What you said about your father earlier, about his sermon and you being his heir and all...” he started, just to be silenced by Nuri's tender lips closing over his own deep red ones once more. “Hush, sweetheart. He is not going to separate us. I won't let that happen. I love you!”

Erik pulled back. “Please, Nuri, let me say this!” he pleaded. Nuri frowned, obviously not happy about the direction the evening seemed to take, but he nodded, settling his weight on his elbow and putting his head on his hand.

“I know that you will do everything you can to not let that happen. But, life isn't always fair and sometimes, things like that happen and there is nothing you or me could do about it. And therefore, I bought some things.” He felt himself blushing, but he held Nuri's gaze as he continued to speak.

Nuri's frown deepened, obviously not getting the point. “Things?” he inquired confused. Erik bit his lip, searching for a way to express what he wanted to say without having to use words like 'lube' or 'condoms'.

“Yes, things. The things we will need for... you know... if we really...I – I did some research and looked what we would need in case that we...would 'do' it...” he stammered his way through his clumsy explanation. He could tell the moment Nuri realized what he was talking about by the redness creeping into the older one's cheeks covered with a slight dark stubble.

“You mean if we slept together? So really how in sleeping together?” the other boy asked hesitantly. Erik was astonished that the older one seemed to be as embarrassed as he himself felt, somehow, Erik had thought that Nuri would have some experience and be much cooler when it came to this. He nodded his head, actually being glad that the other boy wasn't as cool as he had thought Nuri would be, because it made it easier for him and less embarrassing.

Nuri just stared at him and Erik waited anxiously for his reaction. Finally, the other boy bent down to kiss him again. It was a tender kiss full of love and wonder and Erik melted like ice in the sunshine by this proof of Nuri's love for him.

“Are you really sure that you want to do this, tonight and with me, sweetheart?” he whispered as he nibbled at Erik's swollen bottom lip again.

Erik wrapped his arms around his neck, returning the kiss with all the love he felt for the young man who was everything he had ever dreamed of.

“Yes, Nuri, I am sure. I've never been surer in my life. I want to lose my virginity tonight. And I want it to be you taking it. I want you to be my first man, Nuri Sahin, you and only you.”


	34. Two Boys Making Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What the title says. Erik and Nuri make love for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the longest chapter of this story so far, but I didn't want to split it in two halves. It also is some kind of gift or compensation because I will take a break after posting this chapter and a short statement with writing for this fandom due to some unpleasant things that happened and some hurtful statements I received to my stories. Positive feedback is important for every author and the positive feedback I have gotten in form of kudos or comments lately, apart from the constant support of a few loyal friends, became pretty rare while criticism or no feedback at all became more and more.
> 
> I don't know for how long I will need a break from writing for this fandom, and I'm aware of the fact that I will lose readers because of my decision, but writing should be a pleasure and not only a duty and the my pleasure and passion I always felt when I wrote stories for you has faded.
> 
> I hope you will enjoy this chapter nonetheless, I put all my heart into it.

Erik was sure that he was red all over his face, but he kept looking at Nuri, firmly, because he really didn't want the other boy to back away because he thought that Erik hadn't spoken the truth. Nuri swallowed audibly and Erik could see some emotions flickering over his face, too quick and too brief for him to detect them, but Erik could feel his heart sink and his face fell as the silence stretched between them.

Nuri didn't want him! He didn't desire and love him as much as he wanted the dark-haired boy. Erik tried to pull away from his boyfriend and turn around, unable to look in the soft brown eyes any longer.

“Sweetheart, not, please...” Nuri pleaded, stroking his face in a somewhat helpless gesture. Erik turned his head away, blinking against the tears welling up in his eyes.

“You don't want me. You don't love me,” he whispered brokenly, his breath hitching in his throat.

“That's not true, sweetheart! I love you more than anything. It's just... It – it would be my first time, as well, and I don't want to hurt you... I read some things, but I never...” Nuri's voice trailed off and he buried his face in the crook of Erik's warm neck.

Erik went still, lying there in complete awe and wonder. His hand came up to stroke the tousled dark hair and after a few minutes, the body of the older boy lost some of its tension and Nuri hesitantly lifted his head up again. His cheeks were flushed with both, his arousal and his embarrassment and Erik felt overwhelmed with his love for the astonishing young man who always seemed to be so confident and sure about what he was doing. Erik could imagine how much it must have cost him to admit his own insecurity, and he pulled his head down to kiss him.

“You could never hurt me with your love, Nuri. I want you to make love to me tonight. Please, let us learn how to do it together,” he whispered against his lips and the next thing he knew was that Nuri kissed him with such passion and need that he couldn't breathe properly any longer. Nuri had never kissed him like that before, and all he could do was giving in to this incredible kiss and wrap his arms around the other boy to have something to hold on. Nuri's tongue seemed to be everywhere in his mouth, licking and stroking and teasing and the grip of his arms around him, holding him tight, was almost painful.

But Erik didn't mind, knowing for sure that the other boy would be as tender and gentle as he only could be when it came to making love to him, and Erik actually loved this slighter rough side of him. After all, he was a boy himself and even though he might be inexperienced and uncertain about the forthcoming things, but he surely wasn't that delicate that Nuri would be in the need to treat him like a shrinking violet being asked for a dance at an advanced age for the very first time.

The need for air finally forced them to part again, and Erik's tingling lips were bruised from the ardent onslaught as Nuri cupped his face with his hands, looking him in his eyes with so much adoration and devotion that Erik's throat tightened with his own feelings.

“I will be as careful as possible, I promise you!” the dark-haired boy whispered hoarsely and Erik smiled at him. “I know, Nuri. I trust you.”

He wriggled underneath the heavy weight pressing him down, and Nuri frowned irritated until he realized what the younger boy attempted to do – undressing the rest of his clothing. He blushed again, two crimson-red spots forming on his cheeks, and Erik dwelt in the beautiful sight, knowing that he was the only one being allowed to see Nuri like this: all ruffled and tousled and flushed, the shy and sheepish smile curling at the corners of his mouth looking simply adorable.

“Uhm, you're right, it will be easier if we're naked?” Nuri mumbled and Erik snickered cheerfully. “I think so.” he answered, giggling as Nuri's surprisingly clumsy tries to get rid of his tight pants without letting go of his sweetheart tickled his flanks.

For a while, the sounds of laughter, breathless moans and the rustling of clothes was all one watching them could have heard - if there had actually been anybody watching them, but, as things stood, the two boys were alone in their shelter Erik's room had become to them, and they found back to their easiness in each other's company they always felt as they stripped, tickling and kissing one another in between, feeling safe in the knowledge that they were alone and had all night to explore the wonders of making love for the first time awaiting them.

Both heaved a relieved sigh as they were finally naked, their eyes roaming over their naked bodies, and Erik swallowed as his admiring gaze fell upon the unmistakable proof of the other boy's strong desire for him. Nuri's cock was perfect, so hard and ready to take him and when Erik remembered how it had felt in his hand and his mouth, thick and heavy and warm, smelling and tasting of pure Nuri, he found himself impatient to finally feel this wonderful evidence of the older one's maleness deep inside him and fill the emptiness he had felt for so long.

“You are so beautiful,” the younger boy whispered with rapt devotion in his voice, his fingers tracing along the strong-muscled chest and the flat abdomen of the other teenager, the soft fur showing that Nuri was more a young man than a boy any longer tickling his sensitive fingertips. But, just when Erik was about to close his hand around the wonderful cock he longed so much to touch, Nuri caught his hand, bringing it to his lips to dab soft kisses of each fingertip.

“Don't do that, sweetheart, or I might find myself unable to go as slow as you need and deserve it,” he admitted, his voice raw with his strong need and arousal.

Erik blushed, watching the dark-haired kissing his fingers. “You want me that bad?” he asked amazed, and Nuri's gaze became heated and dark. “More than bad, Erik, you really don't have to worry about me not wanting you enough. The opposite is true. I want you so much that I hardly can think straight any longer. But, I need to have a clear mind to make it as perfect as it can be for you.”

Erik shook his head, pulling him in for another kiss. “You don't have to do anything to make it perfect, Nuri,” he said with great sincerity. “You being my first man is all I need for everything being perfect.”

“I hope so, sweetheart. But, I would never forgive myself if I hurt you, so please, don't make it harder for me to keep my self-control than it already is for me and don't touch me – there,” the older one replied and Erik nodded his head. “Okay, I won't. Although it will be hard to not touch you. I want you so much.”

“The same here,” Nuri chuckled, kissing Erik on the tip of his nose. “We need some lubricant, don't we?” he then asked, blushing again.

Erik joined him in his redness, pulling at the drawer of his bedside table. “Uhm, yes. My brother gave me something,” he mumbled, his fingers clenching around the small bottle with the liquid Mario had told him would be the best for what he wanted to do.

Nuri took the bottle, considering it before he shot a an appraising glance at his boyfriend. “You talked to your brother about – this?” he asked and Erik bit his lip.

“Yes, I did. I trust him and he needs to know what I'm doing when he trusts me enough to allow me staying alone at home while he is on an away match with his club. He – bought it for me because I'm not old enough to buy such things somewhere else than in DM.” Erik felt a little bit uncomfortable having to lie to his beloved Nuri, but even though he trusted Nuri enough to keep Mario's secret, he didn't want to risk anything, and he hadn't talked to Mario about revealing his orientation to Nuri beforehand, especially with Nuri's father being one of the sponsors. He could only hope that nothing suspicious would slip out of his mouth, but, it was clear that this special lubricant wasn't to be found in any drugstore selling such things in Germany, and admitting that Mario had bought it for him as the caring older brother he was, was all what he could tell Nuri without risking too much.

“I see. So he is really okay with you and me being together?” The older teenager inquired hesitantly after he had taken a closer look at the bottle. “This high quality, isn't it?”

Erik worried his lip again, relieved that Nuri didn't want to know more about his talk with his brother than only whether his stepbrother being responsible for his well-being during their parents' absence was fine with Nuri staying overnight and sleeping with him.

“Yes, and yes. He is okay with you and me being together and yeah, he bought it for me. I had bought something in DM, but he said that he would look for the good stuff for us, and he gave it to me before he left.”

Nuri managed a crooked grin. “I should thank him then, I guess?” he drawled, a slight shudder wrecking him by the thought of facing Mario Götze and thanking him for buying lube for them.

Erik gulped for air, paling by the mere thought of this to happen. “Urgh, that's not necessary, Nuri. I did if for both of us,” he hurried to assure his boyfriend, his voice cracking at the end of the sentence.

Nuri chuckled, kissing his embarrassed sweetheart, tenderly, to calm the brunet down. “I was only kidding,” he said, his voice only a soft whisper as his longing distracted him thoroughly and effectively from stepbrothers and awkward talks with them.

As strange as it was, their desire hadn't faded during their own awkward talk and after a few more kisses, Nuri opened the bottle, coating his fingers with the cool liquid. Erik watched him doing it and the slight trembling of the older one's fingers proved to him that Nuri was as excited about what would hopefully happen very soon as he himself was. He swallowed, knowing that he had one thing to say before they would start with the whole thing, remembering the promise Mario had pulled from him. He took the package with the condoms out of the drawer, placing it beside him on the mattress. Nuri looked at it and then raised his eyes at Erik's heated face again.

“You are right Erik, don't worry. I wouldn't have asked you to do it without rubber,” he said as Erik opened his mouth.

“Thank you,” was all Erik could whisper before Nuri's lips were upon his own again, nibbling and teasing and then, he felt a warm hand sneaking its way between his thighs and gently cupping his tender balls before it wandered deeper, one curious finger stroking over the sweaty cleft between his butt cheeks.

Erik moaned softly with the utterly new sensation, focusing on his breathing to stay relaxed and let the finger stroking curiously around finding its way to the most intimate part of his aroused body without any problems.

Nuri kissed him the entire time, soft and almost chaste kisses, licking with his tongue over Erik's smooth bottom lip as he finally reached the brunet's secret entrance, grazing over it with his fingertip for the very first time.

No one had ever touched him there before, at least Erik couldn't remember it, because he had always insisted of using suppositories himself when he had needed one ever since he had been three or four years old. His time as a baby didn't count, he decided as he held his breath, taking in the totally new feeling of having another hand than his own stroking over this part of his body.

Erik had touched himself there a few times since he had made up his mind about wanting to sleep with Nuri, shyly exploring his virgin rosebud and the sensitive area of his perineum, he had even slipped one finger inside and moved it in and out, his cheeks hot with his embarrassment although no one had been there watching him. It had felt strange, but also good, and Erik couldn't wait to explore the feelings the finger of his beloved one would hopefully arouse in him.

“Erik?” the dark and husky voice of his boyfriend startled him from his contemplation and he blinked in the attempt to clear his lust-fogged mind and listen to what Nuri obviously wanted to tell him.

“W-w-what?” he stammered, fearing that Nuri had changed his mind when he saw the seriousness in the tender gaze.

“You have to promise me that you will tell me to stop if you need me to, Erik!” Nuri said and his voice left no doubts that he meant what he had said. “At any time, sweetheart. If you tell me to stop, I will stop, no matter when it will be, understood?”

Erik slowly nodded his head. “I promise you, Nuri. I will tell you to stop if I really need you to, but please, keep doing what you're doing – it - it feels good...” he whispered and Nuri relaxed as he saw the honesty in his young lover's eyes.

“I want it to be perfect for you sweetheart,” he murmured, continuing with drawing soft circles around his tight rosebud that began to quiver under the gentle ministration. A soft moan escaped Erik's lips and he instinctively spread his legs wider to give the wonderful young man pleasuring him with this new and so exciting caresses so much better access to his secret core. “So good!” he whimpered and Nuri rewarded him with another passionate kiss as Erik's arching into the touch assured him that the younger boy had spoken the truth, finding the things he did truly pleasurable.

The cheeky tongue slipping into his mouth and claiming all the spots it had claimed before distracted Erik from the cheeky and a little bit clumsy finger slowly slipping into the tight channel hidden behind the now relaxed entrance, and it took Erik one moment until he realized why he felt so full all of a sudden. He gasped into the kiss and the finger stilled its gentle poking around instantly, holding its ground but waiting patiently until the tight muscle clenching around it relaxed again. Then, he pushed his finger as deep into the virgin channel as he could, moving it forth and back, still a little bit uncertain and clumsily, and he stilled his movement again as Erik suddenly jerked and gasped out.

“Did I hurt you?” the dark-haired boy stammered, startled, drawing back from Erik's well-kissed mouth to watch him closely.

“I'm fine, Nuri, please!” Erik begged, craving for more of the sensation that had shot through him as the older boy had carefully thrust his digit inside as far as he could and accidentally brushed over one spot that had sent an electric jolt along his spine. “Do it again, it felt so good! I need more of this!”

The older boy's eyes sparkled with wonder and happiness. “I think I found your sweet spot, then,” he stammered, obviously not sure whether he was dreaming or not. He moved his finger again, but it took a while until he had found what he had hit by accident the first time so easily once again, and the stretching and poking felt a little bit uncomfortable until Erik had accustomed himself to the slight burning inside him and managed to adjust his breathing and stay relaxed.

For a while, both of them were content with what Nuri was doing, gently thrusting his finger in and out and kissing Erik while he murmured incoherent words of love in German, English and Turkish against his lips, and every time he grazed over this little knob, Erik rewarded him with a moan and a shiver. Erik didn't know how much time had passed when he felt ready to take more than one finger and he turned his head to whisper into the older one's ear: “I'm ready for two fingers, I think.”

Nuri's lips brushed his cheek as he lifted his head from his shoulder where he had buried his face, looking attentively at him. “Are you sure?” he asked, hesitantly pulling his finger out to stroke with two digits over his now slick and loosened up hole.

“Yes, I'm sure. It feels good and I need to feel more of this – of you!” Erik said, pushing his hips up as Nuri still hesitated to slip with two fingers into him. He hissed and tensed up, caught by surprise by the new level of stretching, but when Nuri wanted to pull out, he vigorously shook his head.

“No, don't. I'm good. I just need a moment.”

The dark-haired teenager waited patiently, kissing Erik tenderly in the meantime, and Erik wrapped his arms around his neck again, grateful that his wonderful boyfriend kept his promise to go slow although the hard pressure against his thigh proved to Erik how eager and needy the older boy was to make him all his. His own arousal had faded a little bit due to all the unknown experiences and his uncertainty, but Erik was quite positive that it would come back when they could take the next step and he would feel Nuri as close as two beings only could be.

When he relaxed, the fingers started to move and he felt the next brush over his prostrate far more intensive than before. Erik moaned loudly, unable to hold back the sounds of pleasure fleeing his lips as the new sensation overwhelmed him. Nuri purred happily into his ear, encouraged by Erik's obvious pleasure and his movements came much more fluent now.

Erik gasped and moaned with every thrust and his cock showed its freshly awakened interest in the happenings again, growing to full hardness and length once more and leaving a small trace of wetness on Nuri's flat abdomen it was nudging against because of the way the older one lay half atop of the younger boy.

“Hm, someone's eager to feel me,” Nuri purred in his dark bedroom-voice, apparently pleased that he must do it right somehow, judging by his sweetheart's reaction. Erik moaned frustrated as the fingers left his quivering hole, gasping as suddenly three fingers snaked their way in again. “God, yes, that's good! Love you!” he whimpered, not caring about the pleading in his voice.

“I love you, Erik, I love you so, you don't know how much – right from first sight on,” Nuri murmured into his ear, pulling with his teeth at the sensitive earlobe and Erik rewarded him for both, the tender bite and the things his fingers did deep inside him with a breathless mewl. He was stretched and filled and he loved it despite the low burn and the knowledge that sitting on his backside would be slightly uncomfortable after this night. Nuri's scent enclosed him and the older boy radiated warmth, love and comfort, tenderness and passion as he prepared him gently, kissing him and telling him how much he loved him all the while. Erik's hands carded through the tousled black hair, the way it tickled his sweaty palms adding to the wonderful feelings pooling in his groin. Erik was rock-hard again and he could feel the tension of his arousal building at the end of his spine, different from the tension he knew when Nuri or his own hand stimulated his cock and yet an unmistakable sign of his approaching orgasm.

“I'm ready, Nuri. Please, take me!” he whispered urgently, and Nuri lifted his head from his throat where he had licked and nibbled around, his eyes dark rounds because of his own strong arousal.

“Are you really sure about this, sweetheart?” he asked, his husky voice trembling with the need to take the younger boy and make him his in all the right ways, but Erik could see that Nuri would keep his promise and stop whenever Erik would tell him to stop by the determination behind the arousal.

“Yes, I am sure. I want it. I want you, now!” he said, nodding his head in confirmation. Nuri licked his lips, slowly pulling his fingers out. Erik felt wide and empty and his rosebud pulsed helplessly in the attempt to swallow back what wasn't there any longer as Nuri now took the package with the condom, slowly ripping it open. Erik longed to do it for him, to roll the latex over the throbbing length of Nuri's hard cock, glistening with the pre-come their foreplay had milked from him, but just when he wanted to reach out for it to do it, the other teenager turned away from him with sudden shyness as he struggled with his trembling fingers and the thin rubber to roll it over his hard member.

Erik averted his eyes to give him the privacy he obviously needed to put the condom where it belonged without damaging it. Erik had been a witness to the things which had happened between his mother and his father before their divorce, and he had learned at a rather young age that love without respect and granting the beloved ones the privacy they needed and deserved now and then never worked; and his talks with his older brother and the way Mario always treated him with respect and care especially after his confession that he wanted to sleep with Nuri had only confirmed his belief in the importance of those things.

He waited patiently until Nuri turned around to him again, focusing on his breathing and he just smiled tenderly at his boyfriend, pretending not to notice his uncertainty and embarrassment.

“I want you so much,” Nuri confessed as he carefully covered Erik with his own body, unsure how to proceed right now. Erik had forgotten to ask Mario about the best position, but he was pretty sure that his brother would have told him if making love lying face to face with another man wasn't possible, and so he hesitantly wrapped his legs around Nuri's hips and raised his own hips, hoping that this position wouldn't make him being tensed up too much. The sensation of something poking against his needy core made him gasp out, and he squeezed his eyes shut as the engorged head of Nuri's cock breached his still rather tight rosebud.

He could feel Nuri watching him as the older boy stilled above him. “Shall I stop, Erik?” he asked, his voice surprisingly coherent. Erik shook his head. “No, just go slow, please.”

“Of course, sweetheart, I would never hurt you.” Nuri kissed his forehead, carefully pushing another centimeter in. His arms at each side of Erik's sides trembled with his effort to hold himself back and not crush the younger boy with his weight and Erik relaxed as his channel slowly adjusted to the unknown intrusion. “More!” he ground out as the pleasure of feeling the love of his life so close slowly replaced the discomfort of being stretched to his limits.

Nuri pushed one more inch in, stilling again and Erik flinched as something wet dropped down onto his face. “Sorry, it's just...warm...” The dark-haired teenager apologized as another drop of sweat that had formed of his forehead followed the laws of gravity, joining its companion on Erik's cheek. Erik opened his eyes again with a giggle.

“It's okay, as long as you don't try to drown me...” he drawled in the attempt to ease the tension between them and in his butt, and Nuri grinned mischievously at him. “Not this time. Maybe somewhere else in the future when I can prove to you that I'm the best and hunkiest stallion you have ever met,” he joked ironically and their relieved chuckle helped both of them to go on with their task.

Erik relaxed, pulling Nuri's head down. “I already know what a wonderful and hunky stallion you are, Nuri, I don't need any other proof of that,” he whispered ardently, digging his heels into Nuri's strong-muscled butt cheeks. This caught the other boy by surprise and he slumped down on him with a yelp, suddenly being buried balls-deep into Erik's tight heat.

“Fuck, Erik, that's...” was all that came out of his mouth, and Erik moaned with the sensation of being filled and surrounded by the young man he loved so much. It hurt and he was grateful that Nuri didn't try to move, but it was totally worth it and he felt tears of joy, happiness and love filling his eyes as he searched blindly for Nuri's salty lips. Nuri kissed him back with the same urge, his hands keeping Erik's head in place.

“Love you so, babe. You don't know how much I love you!” he croaked out and Erik could hear that the other boy was as close to tears as he himself. He wrapped his arms and legs tightly around him, shyly moving his hips as best as he could, lying trapped underneath the heavier boy, and Nuri groaned as if he felt pain. “Fuck, sweetheart, I don't know how long I can stand this. You're so tight and hot and so... God, this is so...”

Erik could feel his young lover struggling to keep his overwhelming desire at bay and wait for him, but he knew that he wouldn't come in time with the older one, the hardness pulsing erratically deep inside him told him that Nuri was far too close to his orgasm to be able to wait for him.

But, Erik hadn't expected his first time to be perfect in every possible way, and he knew that there would be a time for sharing their height of passion when they would both be more experienced and sure about what they were doing. He started to move in earnest now and Nuri's hips fell in step with his jerks to their own will, as his need for release overtook the dark-haired teenager. He didn't even think of snaking a hand between their sweat-slicked bodies to jerk his boyfriend off at the same time, but Erik didn't mind, knowing that Nuri wasn't selfish but simply trapped in the new sensation of being so close to him and his painful desire that needed to be satisfied so desperately.

He focused on making it as perfect for Nuri as the first time taking him for the older boy should be, and this helped him to relax and enjoy their a little bit clumsy lovemaking as best as he could with still having to get used to the burning and stretching of his secret core and his tight ring muscle.

Nuri had buried his face in his shoulder again, as his hips stuttered their way towards his climax, and when he suddenly went rigid above him, arching his back like a tomcat and accidentally biting into his shoulder, Erik knew that he had reached his goal by making it as pleasurable as possible for the young man he loved so much. Nuri's hoarse cry of ecstasy and satisfaction tickled his bitten and over-sensitive skin and the heavy pulsing deep inside him as the boy lying on top of him filled the rubber with his seed again and again massaged his cramping walls in a very arousing way.

He moaned, pushing his hips up to get more of this wonderful feeling and a small disappointed whimper escaped his lips as Nuri dropped down on him, making it impossible for him to move, panting heavily as he tried to catch his breath.

“I'm sorry, sweetheart, I'm so sorry,” he murmured brokenly. “I tried, but I couldn't wait any longer.” Nuri lifted his head up, looking miserably at the brunet smiling up at him. “I wanted it to be perfect for you, but I screwed it.” he accused himself.

“No, you didn't, love. It was perfect. It still is perfect. It is you and I felt so close to you – I still do, please, don't be sorry. It is wonderful to feel you inside me,” Erik replied tenderly, taking Nuri's hand and guiding it in between their bodies. “I was close, you can use your hand...”

Nuri sighed in relief as he heard Erik's words, carefully shifting his weight to have more room for his task, watching the younger one closely as he wrapped his warm hand around him and started to move it up and down on Erik's steel-hard and with his arousal wet cock. Erik hadn't lied as he had told him that he had been close and it didn't take more than a minute of tender ministration until Erik felt his orgasm being close again, arching into the next stroke. His walls clenched around Nuri's still half-hard cock as he shot his pleasure and ecstasy in hot and fast jets all over the clever fingers pulling his climax from him and he cried out, his eyes never leaving Nuri's, telling the other boy that his own satisfaction was as intensive and perfect as it only could be.

Nuri's gaze was filled with wonder and devotion as he watched his sweetheart coming undone and when it was finally over and Erik lay there, dazed, happy and utterly satisfied, he slowly pulled out of him, wiping away the mess they had made and throwing the used rubber into the trash bin under Erik's bedside table.

Erik snuggled close to him, his arm around his waist and using Nuri's chest as a pillow for his head when the older boy lay down beside him again. Nuri kissed his temple, smiling at him. “Are you okay, sweetheart? Did I hurt you?” he asked quietly, his eyes filled with pure bliss but also concern. Erik craned his head, beaming at his wonderful boyfriend.

“I'm more than okay, Nuri. I'm the happiest guy in the entire world. It was perfect and you didn't hurt me. I have to get used to it and I surely will feel my ass when I have to sit, but it was totally worth it and I'm so happy that we really did it,” he assured him sincerely and Nuri blushed and kissed his forehead.

“Me too, sweetheart, me too. I'm happier than I ever was and I love you so much. And the next time, I will wait for you,” he promised him. “The next time when we'll do it, I will wait for you and we will come together.”

And Erik knew that this was the truth, because Nuri always kept the promises he had made.


	35. A Wonderful Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mario visits Marco the Sunday after the game against Stuttgart and he has a surprise for his beloved Romeo. Maybe, there will also be time for a sweet reunion afterwards...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to admit that I have a hard time writing Marco with someone else than Erik lately, but I really wanted to upate this story and I did my best to make up for the long wait. This chapter is all about Mario and Marco and I hope that you will like it. Please, let me know and share your opinion with me, because your feedback is more than important for me. I'm working fulltime again after a rather long break and there is only little time and strength left for writing, mostly at the weekends. Your comments and kudos are what keeps me going on with writing and posting even when I feel totally wrung out and I want to ask you to keep up your support and let me know if you're still liking what I write. A huge thank you to all of you who will do. <33
> 
> I was also told that sexy encounters should not be 'perfect' all of the time, so I made this one a little bit more 'unperfect', I hope you will enjoy reading it. ;-)

Marco woke up with a smile on his face on Sunday morning, looking forward to a lazy day with his beloved Julian, meaning Sunny, meaning Mario. His boyfriend had come home after the game against Stuttgart last evening, and they had talked on the phone for a while, both regretting that they couldn't see each other right away. Mario hadn't wanted to leave his younger brother alone again though, and Marco had agreed with him that he should better sleep at home and spend the rest of the evening with Erik.

Marco's pupil would spend the day with his friend Matze, and Mario only needed to show up at the club for a short training in the morning, but he would visit Marco for a late brunch and stay at his place for the rest of the day. Marco really couldn't wait to see him again, wrap his arms around him and inhale his scent, he had missed him so much that it had been a physical ache.

The blond teacher stayed in bed for twenty more minutes, thinking about how much his life had changed during the last couple of weeks. A change for the better, that much was clear. He hadn't been unhappy before he had met Mario, but he had felt lonely now and then, musing about if and when he would find someone special again. Someone accepting and loving him the way he was instead of trying to change him the way they wanted him to be. Mario truly accepted him the way he was without any doubts or reservations.

The young footballer never behaved like the celebrity he had become, one of the most famous footballers in Germany, he was only Mario when they were together, his boyfriend and Erik's older, caring brother. They talked about Shakespeare and politics, and Mario never showed any sign of annoyance when Marco put two and two together much faster than he himself.

Not that Mario would be slow or dense, he was intelligent and knew a lot about what was going on in the world, and he also knew how to deal with the money he earned. Marco was aware that a lot of footballers spent too much money without wasting a thought of the future when their career would be over, but Mario was always careful and didn't like to waste his money or to spend it for unnecessary things he didn't need. He once had admitted to Marco that he had set up a fond for Erik, knowing about his wish to become a photographer, and Marco admired and loved him for that even more than he had loved him before. Erik didn't know about the money his brother saved for him, and Mario wanted it to stay that way until his stepbrother had finished school and decided where and what he wanted to study.

The blond sighed, happily, finally hauling himself out of his warm and cozy bed. Hopefully, he would spend more time in his bedroom later, he couldn't wait to feel his beloved Sunny as close as possible again, but now, it was time to see to the brunch he wanted to serve, and he entered his bathroom with a cheerful melody on his lips.

Life was wonderful and he was determined to savor their day together to the fullest and make the best out of it.

 

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Mario knew that he was grinning, stupidly, as he pressed the button of the door bell, but he couldn't help himself. He had missed Marco so badly, his wonderful Romeo, and he couldn't truly believe that finally, they would see each other again. Not to mention the surprise he had for Marco and which his boyfriend hopefully would like. The idea to this surprise had popped up in his mind a couple of days after his talk with Marco about the theater play, and he had made a few phone calls to make sure that Marco would get the help he needed to make the play a success.

The buzzer of the door broke in on his musings, and Mario pushed the door open and headed upstairs, keeping his face lowered down to the ground to avoid being seen by some nosy neighbors. This was the only thing he truly hated about his relationship with the love of his life, that he had always to be that careful and cautious, having to keep his love a secret and live a life in the shadows. He wasn't that concerned about his own reputation, but he had to be careful for Marco's and Erik's sake. Their love wasn't forbidden, but the public surely wouldn't take it well that Mario dated the teacher of his younger stepbrother, and he really didn't want to ruin Marco's career.

His Romeo waited for him standing on the threshold, a huge smile on his face, and Mario flew into his arms the second the door was closed, hiding them from prying eyes. “Missed you, missed you so!” he almost sobbed, and Marco pressed him close, dabbing kisses all over his face as he murmured again and again: “Missed you just as much, my sweet Sunny.”

“I'm silly,” Mario finally stated as he pulled away with a blush, wiping a tear from his rosy cheek. Marco smiled tenderly at him, cupping his cheeks with his warm hands. “No, you're not silly, Mario. I love you the way you are and I am happy that you don't act as if you were always the cool guy. You don't have to be, not with me, you know that, don't you, Mario?”

Mario drew in a shaky breath. “Yes, I know, Marco. Thank you.” he inhaled again, and his growling stomach confirmed what his nose had detected. “Hm, that smells deliciously. I'm starving!” he moaned, and his taller boyfriend chuckled, wrapping his arm around his shoulder after hanging his jacket on the hook. “It's impossible to overhear that, Sunny,” he teased him, kissing his nose when Mario scowled at him, embarrassedly. “I will make sure that you're fed properly before we'll come to the more pleasurable things later.”

“That sounds good, but the 'more pleasurable things' have to wait for a while longer. I have a surprise for you,” Mario said, earning a disappointed frown from his boyfriend. Marco pulled a face, but his curiosity was too strong to pout longer than only a couple of seconds. “A surprise, really? What kind of surprise?” he wanted to know, and Mario rolled his eyes with a snort. “It wouldn't be a surprise any longer if I told you, right? I'm afraid that you will have to wait until the time is right. Just feed me and you will find out afterwards.”

Marco sighed, theatrically, but gave in. “Alright, let's have brunch, then. Because I really want to know what it is and get my fill later. You have to make up for the long wait, my lovely Julian!”

“I don't think that Shakespeare's Romeo was as horny as you are, Marco!” Mario told him off with a snicker. “His tragedy is about undying courtly love, not about sex!”

His wonderful boyfriend blushed, but chuckled. “I remember the scene with the nightingale and the lark quite well, son don't try to fool me. But, I will be patient and wait until the bear that must have replaced your stomach in Stuttgart has stopped growling. Just sit down and let me serve you, you must be tired,” Marco said, changing from the horny-boyfriend-mode into the concerned-boyfriend-mode within the blink of an eye. Mario rolled his eyes once more, he was a sportsman and not a child that needed to be fussed about, but if Marco needed to fuss about him a little bit after their separation, then he would let him do it, gladly.

The young footballer sat down and relaxed, finally feeling home again.

 

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“Where are we going?” Marco asked for the at least tenth time, earning a soft punch in his side and a scowl from his beloved footballer with that. “Honestly, Marco, you are worse than a child waiting for Santa Claus. I told you that it would be a surprise and that you would learn where we're going soon enough, didn't I? I'm tired of repeating myself, so for heaven's sake, will you please stop asking me questions I won't answer?” Mario almost growled, averting his eyes to focus on the street again. Marco let out a heartfelt sigh, turning his head to stare out of the windscreen, as well. “You're mean!” he complained. “We're already driving for more than half an hour and we have left the city a while ago!”

Mario just shrugged his shoulders. “I never said that my surprise would be in Munich. But, we're almost there, so stop whining. I promise you that there will be enough time left for the nightingale and the lark afterwards. I told Erik that I would come home late, and he was fine with that.”

The mentioning of his pupil distracted Marco from his impatience and his curiosity, and he turned to face Mario again. “How is he? You told me that he spent the last Friday and Saturday alone at home?”

Mario bit his lip, avoiding Marco's attentive gaze. “He wasn't alone. Nuri spent the night with him,” he finally admitted after a rather long silence. Marco raised an eyebrow. “Uhm, I can see why you didn't tell me that beforehand. You know what they have most likely done, don't you, Mario?”

The spot where Mario was worrying his lip became deep red, and Marco reached out to stroke with his thumb over the swollen spot. “Stop biting your lip, Sunny. I didn't mean to make you a bad conscience, I'm sorry. I can imagine how hard it must be for you to take care of your minor brother while your parents are away, and you're doing more than great, I can assure you. I really wished that some of the parents of my other pupils would take care of their children the way you care for Erik.”

Mario smiled gratefully at him. “Thank you, Marco. It is hard, yes, but I love taking care of him. We have become very close lately and he has changed, a lot, since our first talk and since Nuri became his boyfriend. I would never have thought it and at first, I was truly worried because of Nuri's background, but Nuri does him a world of good and he is a great guy. He was still there when I came home, they have spent the entire Saturday afternoon with learning and doing homework, Erik really wants to make up for his former bad grades. Nuri is patient and knows exactly how to explain the things to him Erik has a hard time to understand. Plus, he is strict enough to make Erik doing his stuff instead of letting him find some excuses.”

Marco stroked his cheek before putting his hand on Mario's thigh while the younger one took a turn into a rather small street with neat white houses at each side of the road.

“They didn't learn during the night, did they?” he asked gently, and Mario chuckled, weakly. “Nope, of course not. And yes, Marco, I know what they did. I know it because Erik came to me beforehand and told me what he wanted to do. He had even gone to DM and bought some stuff. He trusted me enough to talk to me before they did it, and I respect him for that more than I can tell you. He promised me that he would tell Nuri to stop in case he wouldn't be ready, and that Nuri would respect that and accept his no as a no. I assured him that I trusted both of them and I gave him what I knew would truly work to make sure that they would be fine when they slept with each other. They looked so happy when I came home, Marco,” the brunet gazed pleadingly at his older boyfriend, and Marco couldn't blame him for what he had done, even though it had been pretty risky. “I'm sure that they were careful, Mario. Besides, you didn't really have any choice in that matter. They would have done it anyway, only at another place not as safe as your home.”

Mario nodded, relieved. “I thought that same. I didn't want my baby brother's first time to be somewhere not as comfortable and safe as his own bed would be.”

“You did the right thing, Sunny,” he said, and Mario relaxed, stopping before one of the neat white houses. “Here we are, now you will learn more about my surprise for you!” the brunet changed the topic, and Marco curiously followed him out of the car, looking around while Mario rang the door bell.

It didn't take long until the door was opened by a blond woman in her early fifties, a warm smile spreading out on her beautiful, ageless face when she saw Mario and Marco. She pulled Mario into a tight embrace before offering Marco her elegant hand. “Mario! It's so nice to see you again, it has been far too long! Hello Mr. Reus, I am Linnea Schröter, please come in.” Marco shook her hand, feeling a little bit overwhelmed and insecure when he realized who the friendly woman was, but Mario smiled reassuringly at him and tugged him inside the house.

“You are Professor Schröter, aren't you?” he stammered, shooting Mario an astonished look. From where Mario knew this woman? Linnea Schröter took his jacket. “You know me, Mr. Reus?”

Marco blushed. “I know that you are the faculty director of the drama department of our university and that you are specialized in Shakespeare,” he replied, furtively pinching his arm to make sure that he wasn't dreaming. Mario standing beside him looked very smugly. “Linnea is a close friend of my parents, her husband Werner is a colleague of my father. I told her about your play and your difficulties with the costumes, and Linnea was so kind to offer her help,” he said and Marco had to bite his lip to not kiss him right here in Professor Schröter's hallway.

The blond woman with the warm smile raised her eyebrow at the brunet. “You didn't tell Mr. Reus whom you wanted to visit beforehand, Mario?” she asked and now, it was Mario's turn to blush. “No, I didn't. I wanted to surprise him, Linnea. We stayed in close contact since my visit in his school to talk about Erik and his problems, and Mar... Mr. Reus loves Shakespeare as much as you do. Marco – I mean Mr. Reus has only little money he can spend for the play, and costumes would cost too much...” Mario's voice trailed off, and he cast his eyes down when he realized that he had almost revealed their secret, his voice when he had said the name 'Marco' giving away his feelings for Erik's teacher pretty clearly.

Marco swallowed hard, readying himself for Professor Schröter's reaction, but she surprised both of them by pulling Mario into her arms again. “It's okay, Mario, I have suspected for a rather long time that you would be happier with a man instead of a woman, and I never truly appreciated you being together with Ann-Kathrin. Your secret is safe with me, I won't tell anyone. I'm just happy that you are happy and I understand why you want to keep it confidential for the time being.”

She released Mario from her arms, offering Marco her hand again. “It's Linnea for you, then, Marco. I'm considering myself as Mario's aunt somehow, and it would be strange if you called me Professor Schröter the entire time.”

Marco beamed at her, glad that she was so understanding. It felt good to not having to pretend that they were only acquaintances. “It will be my greatest pleasure, Linnea. I admire your work and I have read each article about Shakespeare you have ever written.”

Linnea pursed her lips. “Wow, I'm impressed, Marco. That were quite a few. Please, make yourself comfortable, I brewed coffee for you. Mario told me that he suggested Punks and Poppers for the two families and I really like his idea. I'm sure that I will be able to help you, after all, I was a young woman during the eighties and I remember Poppers and Punks well. I also have connections to most of the Bavarian theaters, and I think that I can help you with the stage scenery, as well.”

The blond woman turned around on her heels and Marco and Mario followed her inside the house, stunned and happy. For the first time since Marco had started with the whole thing, he had the feeling that everything could truly work out, and he had to thank his wonderful boyfriend, his beloved Julian, for that. He took Mario's hand on their way to the living room, squeezing it gently, and the smaller one smiled tenderly at him. “Thank you, Mario, this is truly a wonderful surprise,” Marco murmured and Mario squeezed back, the love he felt for the blond shining in his eyes. “You're welcome, my Romeo. Any time I can do something for you, I will do it, I promise you.”

 

\----------------------------------------

 

Hours later, after a wonderful and very productive afternoon with Linnea, they were back in Marco's flat, and the second, the door closed behind them, Mario pulled him in his arms, pressing his lips onto the older one's lips in a bruising kiss. Mario was sure that he would die if he couldn't feel Marco naked in his arms as soon as even possible, and Marco seemed to feel the same way, because he tugged impatiently at Mario's clothes while his tongue claimed every inch in Mario's eager mouth, making sure that not one single spot was forgotten. Mario's head was spinning, clouded with need and lust, and their clothing left a trace on the floor as they stumbled their way to Marco's bedroom.

“Need you, need you so much, Sunny!” Marco moaned desperately as they had to take a short break to get some air back into their lungs and Mario snickered, breathlessly, not caring about breathing as he crashed their lips together again for another bruising kiss. “Need you, too, need to feel you, my Romeo!”

They were naked when they reached Marco's bed, falling down on it with entangled limbs. The blond took advantage of their positions, trapping Mario beneath him while he kissed and nibbled his way along his jaw, careful to not leave a suspicious hickey on his throat, something the young footballer was as grateful for as he was amazed about it, because he wasn't sure if he had been able to think of that in the heat of passion. “Lube!” he gasped out, because he really couldn't wait any longer to feel Marco close, either Marco allowing him to sheathe his aching arousal deep inside him, or his boyfriend taking him. Mario didn't really care about that as long as it would be one of these two options.

Marco chuckled, raising his head to look at Mario, and the sight of this astonishing and beautiful man staring down at him with hungry eyes, his skin being flushed-red and his blond quiff hanging tousled into his forehead, almost made him come right away. Marco must have shaved only the previous day, his one-day stubble together with his tattoos gave him a rougher look, and Mario couldn't believe that this man was truly his.  
His cock was throbbing and aching although nothing except for passionate kisses had happened so far, and Marco chuckled again when he noticed the brunet's raging hard-on, finally taking pity on him and grabbing the bottle with the lube, his eyes never leaving Mario's face.

He looked like a predator, a beautiful lion about to hunt down his prey and a strangled cry fled Mario's swollen lips when the blond started to lube up his pulsing dick with skilled fingers. Mario's breathing was harsh and fast as he dug his nails into Marco's hipbones to stabilize him when Marco slowly impaled himself on Mario's impressive manhood.

“Are you sure you can take me without prep?” he gritted out, and Marco's eyes lit up with passion. “Do you really want to wait, my sweet Julian? Just go slow, I'm fine, don't worry.”

“I'm trying!” Mario pressed out, his desire to pull Marco down and bury himself deep inside his lover with one deep thrust making him tremble with the effort to hold back. Marco's gaze became tender when he noticed his struggles and he bent forward to kiss the younger one again. The sensation of the perfect tight channel enclosing him so perfectly felt like heaven and Mario gasped into the kiss, his tongue imitating the act of lovemaking as it thrust deep into the soft cavern of Marco's sweet mouth. The blond's strong thighs pressed against his flanks as he started to move, and stars exploded before Mario's closed eyelids that had fallen shut when Marco had kissed him again.

“Marco!” he sobbed, his entire body burning with the need to come. “Hush, it's okay, just let go, Sunny,” the older man soothed him, moving faster up and down on Mario's rock-hard shaft.

“But, you...” Mario tried, even though everything inside screamed to just let go and come.

“Everything's fine. Show me how much you want me and come for me, babe.” Marco's words were the last straw, and Mario came hard with the next thrust, arching his back with a loud scream of ecstasy. His vision went white with the force of his climax and Mario thought he would black out the very next second as he shuddered through his throes of passion and lust, every new wave more pleasurable than the one before.

When it was over after what felt like an eternity, he dropped down onto the mattress, exhausted and totally spent. Marco's lips brushed over his temple, and Mario wrapped his arms around him, burying his face in the warm crook of his neck. “I'm so sorry, I really tried to last longer,” he mumbled, sheepishly. Marco carefully pulled away from Mario's softening cock, laying down beside him and taking him in his arms. “I have no complaints, my beloved Julian. I'll take it as a compliment that you desire me that much.”

Mario groaned. “That didn't happen to me since I was eighteen. I lasted how long? Thirty seconds?” The brunet opened one eye, gazing at Marco from underneath his eyelashes. Marco grinned at him, smugly and contentedly but also with tenderness and all the love he felt for his boyfriend. “One or two minutes, I guess. I'm sure that you will be ready to go again pretty soon, so don't worry, please. In the meantime, you can show me your jerking-off-skills. I think I remember that you're pretty good at that.”

“I'll do my very best, my wonderful Romeo,” Mario whispered, mustering all of the strength that was left after his incredible climax, rolling onto his side and wrapping his fingers around Marco's aroused length. The blond closed his eyes with a soft moan, and Mario's own eyes became wet with the emotions washing over him: love, passion, tenderness and gratitude that this amazing man returned his feelings and loved him back, unquestioningly and deeply.

He watched his lover while he pleasured him, changing the pressure and the speed of his strokes until Marco was only a panting, quivering mess, spilling his hot release all over Mario's fingers when he finally came with a hoarse shout. Mario caressed him through his height, and when he was sure that he had milked the last drop of pleasure from him, he took Marco in his arms and rocked him, enjoying the blond's satisfaction as much as he had enjoyed his own.

Marco sighed, pulling his head down to share a sweet kiss with him and Mario kissed him back, knowing that as long as Marco loved him, everything would be alright, no matter what would come along his way.

Marco was all he needed to be strong and happy, and their love was all that truly mattered, only love and nothing else.


	36. The Hiking Day, Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What the chapter title says: the hiking day has come, and Mario, Erik and Marco are getting ready for it. They all look forward to visiting the training center of the FCB when Marco is called into the rector's office to get some bad news...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it has been a long time since the last chapter, and I am not sure if anyone is still interested in this story. The last chapter has gotten only little feedback, hardly any kudos and only few comments, and I'm musing about not continuing it, because I need visible support and feedback for my WIPs. So, if you're still liking Mario's, Marco's, Erik's and Nuri's adventures, please let me know and leave something for me, each kudo and comment will be much loved and encourage me to continue with this story. <33

The hiking day dawned cold but clear, promising to be sunny and just perfect for such an important event. Erik was already up when Mario entered the kitchen with a yawn hidden behind his palm, smiling at him. “Good morning, little brother. You are up very early!” the older one greeted him, his face showing pure bliss as he strode forward to reach for the huge mug filled with steaming coffee Erik had put onto the kitchen counter for him.

Erik blushed, shrugging his shoulders a little bit sheepishly as he took his own mug and started to softly blow over the hot brew to cool it down. “I couldn't sleep any longer, I'm so nervous!” he admitted, and Mario frowned. “Why should you be nervous, Erik? You are one of the pupils and supposed to only enjoy your hiking day, while Marco will have good reasons to be nervous about everything going smoothly. I'll have good reasons to be nervous, too, because I really don't want to put you to shame by performing badly while your class is watching me with eagle eyes. I have to admit that I yet slept undisturbed and peacefully like a happy baby, despite my nervousness.”

His younger brother shot him a mocking look. “That's most likely because my teacher indulged you before you came home yesterday,” he snorted and now, it was Mario's turn to blush by the younger one's blatant words. “Erik!” he croaked out, coughing violently because the hot coffee had taken the wrong pipe. Erik chuckled and patted his back until Mario could breathe again, inhaling a shaky breath and scowling at his baby brother.

“What?” the teenager asked with innocent, big eyes but a cheeky smile curling at his mouth. “Don't tell me that he didn't. Mr. Reus is a very passionate man, I'm sure about that. His eyes always start to shine with ardor when he talks about his beloved Shakespeare. Did you philosophize about the nightingale and the lark? Because it took you a rather long time to come home.”

“Erik!!!” Mario stared at the teenager almost horrified, and his younger brother chuckled again and guided him to the kitchen table where he pulled the chair for him. Mario slumped down on it with a groan, clinging to his mug with both hands as if it was his lifeline. “Mr. Reus – Marco – your teacher is... is your teacher, you can't... you can't talk about him that way!” he stammered, his cheeks burning with his embarrassment.

“I would never do that in front of any of my classmates or anyone else, Mario!” Erik stated, sounding truly offended now. “But, you are his Romeo – or Julian more likely?”

“Julian, he calls me his Julian,” Mario murmured, his blush deepening if that was even possible.

“I thought so,” Erik grinned before he became serious again. “I would never talk disrespectful about your Marco, my dear brother. He is a wonderful teacher, the best teacher ever to be precise, and I really admire him. But, you are his Julian and he is obviously your Romeo, so you won't mind me teasing you a little bit, will you, Mario?”

Mario sighed. “No, I won't, as long as you won't do it too oftentimes. How's Nuri, by the way?” he asked to change the topic, because he really couldn't take any more teasing that early and without a proper breakfast. Apart from that, the memories of the more than pleasant previous evening he had spent mostly in Marco's bed had an unwanted side-effect, waking his cheeky cock up and making it standing on guard-duty.

Erik turned away from his brother's scrutinizing glance to busy himself with the preparations for their breakfast. “Nuri is fine, but he couldn't come over yesterday, his father didn't let him. Another dinner with one of his business friends where he was supposed to meet their daughter and play the interested gentleman.” Mario could hear how frustrated and sad the teenager still was about his canceled date with his boyfriend.

“I'm sorry to hear that, Erik,” he said, “but you knew it beforehand, that it would be hard for you to be together, didn't you?”

Erik's shoulders stiffened, and he refused to look Mario. “No, not really, Mario. I fell in love with Nuri before I even knew what happened to me, let alone who Nuri actually is. Besides, you fell in love knowing who Marco is quite well, and you couldn't do anything against it, either, right?”

Mario flinched as he realized how much he had hurt his baby brother without meaning to, and he stood up and crossed the short distance to embrace him. Erik tried to pull away from him but then, he buried his face on Mario's shoulder. “I'm sorry, little one, you are right, and I shouldn't have said that. I didn't mean to hurt you.”

Erik sighed, his warm breath tickling the sensitive skin at Mario's throat. “Yes, I know, Mario. It's only that I miss him so much when he's not with me. It's ridiculous, because we see each other every day in school, but still... especially after our wonderful night...” his voice trailed off, and Mario gently stroked his hair. “I know, Erik, it's the same for me with Marco. You know that he can come over whenever he wants to, don't you? I trust you to be careful and not neglect school, and I can see that he's doing you good, so I won't say anything against him staying with you. Just be careful when it comes to his father. Not because of me, but most of all for your own sake, Erik.”

Erik lifted his head from his shoulder and smiled at him, consoled. “Thank you, Mario. And you don't have to fear that I will neglect school, Nuri is a very strict teacher. He wouldn't let me neglect my homework and he has helped me, a lot. We will be careful, I promise you. What do you think about eggs and bacon for breakfast?” he then suggested, and Mario pulled a face but licked his lips. “Uh, I will have to run at least three extra-rounds, but yes, eggs and bacon sound heavenly!” he moaned, earning the reaction from his little brother he had hoped to get, a playful dig in his ribs and a carefree snicker.

Soon, the delicious smell of fried eggs and bacon wafted through the kitchen, and when the two stepbrothers sat down to eat, their quarrel and worries were forgotten, both of them emptying their plates with the healthy appetite of two young men who needed a lot of energy to start the day, properly.

Erik was excited to have a day off from learning and to visit his brother in the training center, and Mario was happy that his brother had found his good mood again and that he himself would see his beloved Marco in a couple of hours. He would have to call him 'Mr. Reus' and act as if his wonderful boyfriend was only his brother's teacher, but this was miles better than not seeing him, at all, and when Mario left together with Erik to drop him at school and drive to the training center of the FCB, he smiled and hummed the songs playing in the radio without any worries clouding his mind.

For once, Mario felt only like a carefree young man head over heels in love, and this feeling stayed with him until he reached the Säbener Straße.

 

_____________________________________________

 

Marco had been as excited about the hiking day as his pupils were, but this had changed very quickly when he had been called into the rector's office just when he had entered the building. He had even put the huge scarf in his old leather satchel before he had left his flat, not sure if he should really wear it, but the red-white 'python' hanging beside his jacket in the wardrobe had somehow 'looked' at him, pleadingly, and Marco had stuffed it into his bag before he had even realized what he was doing. He had made it to school in record time and without any delay, the bus being punctual like it was only rare times and the blond teacher had taken that as a good sign.

Marco was still young enough to get giddy about the prospect of watching the famous footballers of the FCB that closely, especially one certain famous footballer which happened to also be his secret boyfriend, of course, and even Marcel's teasing about him finally becoming a proper football fan hadn't really bothered him. His friend had come over for breakfast, bringing fresh buns and pretzels as a bribery because he had invited himself without asking beforehand; and Marco had blushed when he had caught himself rambling about their hiking day like a small boy visiting the stadium for the very first time.

Marcel had shown mercy, though, and teased him only a little bit, listening to his exuberant praises about his wonderful boyfriend with an understanding smile and only little mockery.

Marco's good mood had dropped into the deepest cellar when he had heard the reason why the rector had called him into his office.

“Mr. Sahin insisted of accompanying you on your hiking day, Marco. He said that you can't keep your eyes on all of your pupils in the subway and that he wants to make sure that the 'uneducated' kids all teenagers are these days will show the appropriate behavior. He told me frankly that you are too young and inexperienced to do that all by yourself, and I couldn't convince him that you are more than capable of looking after your class on your own, I'm sorry, Marco. I expect you to make the best out of the situation and not annoy him. We cannot risk Mr. Sahin pressing charges against us in the future again and again because of some minor issues we can't avoid to happen now and then.

Marco had stared at the older man, shocked and with a dropped jaw, but he was reasonable enough to know that Mr. Klopp hadn't had any other chance than to agree to Mr. Sahin's 'request', which was actually more an order and not a real request. He had sighed and nodded his head in defeat. “Of course, I understand you. When will he come here?”

Mr. Klopp had smiled, grimly. “I told him to come at eight. This will give you enough time to instruct your pupils without him being a witness of what you're saying to them.”

Marco had nodded again. “Fair enough, I shall hurry and talk to them before he shows up, then. Thank you, Mr. Klopp, I'm sure my students will teach him a lesson about how well-behaved teenagers can actually be nowadays!” he had said before turning around to leave the office and head in the direction of the classroom he was now about to enter.

“Good morning, my dear pupils!” he greeted them almost mechanically, and the cheerful “good morning our dear Mr. Reus!” coming from twenty-six throats made him smile at his young charges with fondness and joy. His class was a good class, no matter what Mr. Sahin might think about them, and he stopped before his desk to take a look at his kids. He didn't have the same problems other teachers had with their students being too late almost each and every morning, his pupils were all punctual most of the times, at least when he had the first class with them, and this morning was no exception from the rule, each of his twenty-six boys and girls had made it in time. He knew, of course, that this was because of the great event awaiting them and not because of him, but when he looked at the rosy and smiling faces gazing back at him, expectantly, he really couldn't blame them for their excitement. A lot of them had put on red-white scarfs like the one still hidden in his bag, and couldn't hide their eagerness to leave the classroom and start their hiking day sooner rather than later.

For one moment, he hated Mr. Sahin for what he had done and for what he would do, his mere presence diminishing the joy and cheerfulness of his pupils, that much Marco knew for sure, and when he averted his eyes from Erik and Matze sitting on their chairs with their red-white scarfs wrapped around their necks to look at Nuri, he could see that the young Turk had put on an impassive mask. Marco suppressed a sigh and gifted the good-looking young man with a brief smile before turning his head to shoot a quick glance at Marie and Lisa. He hadn't been sure whether or not Marie would join them, and he had had a long talk with his class about that the previous day.

Sven, the form captain of the class, had spoken for everyone, assuring him that they all wanted to give Marie a real chance and that they didn't want to exclude her from the hiking day. Marco still had mixed feelings about that, and after knowing that Mr. Sahin would accompany them even more, but he was glad that Marie's classmates were willing to forgive her and wanted her to visit the FCB together with them. Marie was pale around her nose and there were dark shadows under her eyes, but her expression was subdued and grateful for this unexpected chance, and she leaned heavily against her friend Lisa who had wrapped her arm around her shoulders.

Marco sighed again and straightened his shoulders, knowing that he didn't have much time. “There is something I need to tell you before we can leave, and I expect all of you to listen carefully to me and do what I'll tell you to do.”

His pupils frowned because of his unusually strict behavior, but Sven nodded his head. “Of course, Mr. Reus.”

“Very well. Mr. Klopp informed me only a couple of minutes ago that Nuri's father, Mr. Sahin, wants to join us.” He raised a calming hand when the teenagers started to murmur. “I hate this as much as you do, believe me, I think the only one hating this news more than I do is Nuri himself,” he continued, earning a miserable grin and a roll of his eyes from the dark-haired Turk. “Yes, Mr. Reus. My father told me that he would come with us at the breakfast table. I can only apologize for that, I tried to convince him that there would be no need for him canceling his meetings because of our hiking day, but he just wouldn't listen to me.”

“I can imagine, Nuri. It is not your fault, at all, and we all have to make the best out of it,” Marco assured his unhappy pupil, looking each of his students straight in their eyes. “I expect all of you to teach Mr. Sahin the lesson of how well-behaved and well-educated teenagers are nowadays, and that you won't put me to shame in front of him. I know that you can do that and I trust you that you will all present yourselves at your best. Needless to say that I also expect you to not talk about Nuri's and Erik's relationship to Mr. Sahin, understood? I don't have to tell you which consequences such a revelation would have, not only for Nuri, Erik and Erik's brother Mr. Götze, but also for me and the entire school. Did I make myself clear about this?”

Sven's face showed a grim expression. “That goes without saying, Mr. Reus. We have all watched the talk show with Mr. Sahin and Mr. Götze, and I think that I can speak for everyone here in this class when I say that we all want to prove Mr. Sahin's prejudices to be wrong and that none of us really wants to cause any problems for Erik and his brother or our school. Isn't that so, Marie?”

The blond girl looked up from her entangled fingers, biting her lip. “I won't say anything, Sven, I swear to you,” she murmured, fighting against the tears that threatened to roll over her face. Sven smiled at her. “I believe you, Marie. If I had to guess, I would say that Mr. Sahin expects us to hold hands and stand and walk in crocodiles like little children in the kindergarten or the elemantary school normally do,” he joked in a deadpan voice, and the heavy tension that had fallen over the room after Marco's speech eased by the eruption of cheerful laughter the pupils couldn't hold back anymore.

Marco joined the heartfelt laughter, and when it finally subsided, Sven smiled at the desperate girl. “It would be my honor and my pleasure if you would be my partner in the line and hold hands with me, Marie,” he asked her, winking cheerfully at her with his right eye.

Marie blushed, gaping at him, surprised and dumbfounded, but then, she nodded her head and her pale cheeks showed the faintest hint of pink color. “It would be my pleasure and honor, too, Sven,” she agreed, and now, everyone started to talk at the same time, searching loudly for a partner for their places in the two lines.

Marco watched his students with an amused shake of his head, his chest swelling with his pride and joy he felt because his class proved once more what great kids they all were, when a sudden loud knock on the door silenced all of them within an instant again. Twenty-six pairs of eyes stared at the door when Marco turned around to open it, revealing a grimly looking Mr. Sahin standing before the classroom.

Marco put on his most polite smile and stuck his hand out to greet Nuri's father. “Good morning, Mr. Sahin, I am Marco Reus, your son's class teacher. It's my greatest pleasure to finally meet you in person! Please, come in, we are all already waiting for you!”


	37. The Hiking Day, Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco has to deal with Mr. Sahin accompanying him and his students on their hiking day, and his class has found a way to prove to Nuri's father that kids are much more well-behaved nowadays than he would have thought...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My dear readers, I had some time to write and I was in Götzeus-mood today, so I decided to update this story. I didn't know that one can write 2.700 words about a class crossing a street and entering the bus, but it actually took me that much to get Marco and his class into the bus. The next chapter will take place in the Säbener Straße, I promise you. I had fun writing this chapter, I hope you will have fun reading it.
> 
> I've become pretty unsure whether or not I'm still welcome in this fandom, the feedback to most of my works has decreased that much over the past weeks that I'm not certain if you're still appreciating and liking my stories. If you do, please let me know, your kudos and comments would really mean a lot to me. <33

People living nearby a school were normally used to a lot of things when it came to the noise and the discomfort they had to endure most of the year because of living close to one of such normally huge and not very pleasant to look at places. People living in the neighborhood of schools were used to the horrible traffic situation before school started, to the shouting, laughing at screaming of hundredth of children in different ages in the early morning hours, during the breaks and when the school day finally ended, and they hardly payed attention to one single class on their way to their hiking day, glad that the noise during the breaks would be at least a little less loud because of some classes being away from school on this day.

The sight greeting the shivering pedestrians crossing the path of Marco's class was that unusual and extraordinary though, that most of them stopped in their hasty walk to crane their heads and stare disbelievingly at the twenty-six sixteen and seventeen years old teenagers marching in perfectly straight crocodile-manner to the bus-stop before the large, gray building of their school. None of the almost grown-up teenagers spoke, and their faces were suffused with the seriousness and importance of the forthcoming happenings as they walked in the two long lines, their glove-covered hands holding the equally glove-covered hands of their partners walking in the other line next to them.

The silent caravan stopped before the next cross-walk, the heads of the pupils turning to the left side at first and then, to the right side in perfect unison, to make sure that they could cross the street, safely and without any risk, just like they had learned it when they all had still visited the primary school.  
When they were sure that crossing the street would be safe, they began marching all together at the same time again as if they were listening to the inaudible commands of someone only they could see. The long and colorful crocodile crossed the street in an appropriate pace, not too fast but also not too slow, and the twenty-six heads of the strange animal turned to the left and the right sides again to friendly nod at the drivers of the cars stopping before the cross-walk with dropped jaws. Only the loud and impatient honking of the following cars pulled them eventually out of their stunned paralysis, and the twenty-six items of the crocodile shook their heads and “Tz-tz-tz-ed!” to that impudent behavior of the other drivers.

When the last two pupils had reached the other side of the street, the crocodile arranged itself again and started off towards the bus-stop, coming to an abrupt halt right beside it, the tail of the long and pretty weird snake curling a little bit to make room for the other people waiting for the bus, as well. Marco, who had walked at the end of the two lines, hid his grin when he saw the incredulous glances of the grown-ups who couldn't believe their eyes, asking themselves whether or not the pale winter sun was playing tricks on them and let them see things that weren't there.

Mr. Sahin stood at the front of the two lines of pupils, and his face was as pinched as if he had just bitten into a sour citron. Marco had been worried about how to form the two lines because he had actually more male students than female students in his class, which was rather uncommon, anyway, but his pupils had proved to him once more that he could always count on them when it mattered, and he had opened the door to let Nuri's father in with revived spirits and newly awakened hope that the day would go by rather smoothly and without any major problems after solving the problem of the thirteen couples just in time before Mr. Sahin had knocked on their classroom door.

Ewa, Nuri's Juliet had shyly but reasonably suggested to be Nuri's partner in the line, and Lisa, Marie's best friend, had volunteered to be Erik's partner to not arouse any suspicions. The others had agreed to that without any protest, and when their classmates had all found a partner of the opposite gender for their places in the two lines, the remaining four boys had found the whole thing pretty funny instead of feeling offended or left out. They had insisted on being the first and the last pair in the two lines to protect the other couples just like strong men should do, and Marco had gladly agreed to that.

Erik's best friend Matze had taken Auba's hand as if it was the most natural thing in the world to walk in a crocodile while holding hands with another boy as a seventeen years old teenager, and Sven had asked them to be the 'head' of their snake because of their height. Sven's twin Lars had insisted on being the last link of the long snake-tail together with Marcel, to make sure that none of their classmates would get lost along the way, earning a lot of thumbs-up for his wish, and even Mr. Sahin hadn't been able to say anything against it. Marco wasn't so sure whether the Turkish businessman actually believed that his students' behavior was the behavior teenagers normally showed or if he gave himself the credit for it, but as long as he stayed calm and silent and didn't ruin their long-awaited hiking day, Marco was fine with everything.

Marco chuckled when he noticed the sparks of amusement and defiance in the eyes of the two boys. “Can I leave you alone here, Lars and Marcel? I know that you're all having your monthly season tickets, but I'll have to talk to the bus driver, nevertheless.”

Lars and Marcel nodded their heads in perfect unison again. “Of course, Mr. Reus. You can count on us, no one will get lost!”

Marco pulled his bag over his shoulder and winked at them. “I wouldn't mind it if one special link of our crocodile would get lost, but this is none of your problems, I will take care of him myself, guys.”

Marcel rolled his eyes and snickered. “You're getting the worst part, then, Mr. Reus. At least, you don't need to hold hands with him,” he said with a gleeful chuckle, winking at his teacher.

Marco scowled weakly at his cheeky pupil and suppressed a groan as he walked along the right line of his pupils to join Mr. Sahin, who was standing beside Nuri and Ewa building the second item of the crocodile right behind Matze and Auba. He looked as if he feared that Ewa would turn into some kind of Medusa and swallow his son with one huge gulp, and the young teacher resisted the urge to roll his own eyes at the older man only with effort.

“Mr. Reus, are you sure that there will be enough seats for us in the bus? You should really have chartered a private bus for this trip!” Mr. Sahin voiced his displeasure the second Marco stopped by his side.

Marco smiled at Nuri's father, hoping that it didn't look too much like the grimace it actually was. Taking the bus and the subway was half of the fun on such hiking days, and hiring a special bus would have hiked the costs of this day in a way that some of his pupils couldn't have been a part of it.

“Don't worry, Mr. Sahin, the bus will be big enough to swallow the whole crocodile without getting belly-ache because of this rather big dish,” he joked, causing the pretty weird looking crocodile to snicker and giggle at that. Nuri's father of course was the only one not finding the image Marco had aroused with his words funny, at all. Instead, he furrowed his brows to a strict frown. “You know how kids are behaving nowadays! I don't want my son to get into trouble because of some of his classmates getting lost in the overcrowded bus or subway!”

The crocodile growled quietly in annoyance, but went silent again when Marco gazed strictly at it, the appearance of this colorful reptile actually resembling more a giant millipede or a wyvern with twenty-six heads and fifty-two feet. “None of you will get lost, won't you, guys?” Marco asked, and the crocodile eagerly nodded its twenty-six heads.

“Of course, Mr. Reus, we will keep our eyes on you, Mr. Sahin and ourselves during the drive. No one will get lost, scout's honor!”

Marco nodded, contentedly, beaming at the Turkish businessman. “See? Nothing to worry about, at all, Mr. Sahin. My kids know how to behave, don't worry.” Mr. Sahin opened his mouth to voice another protest, but the noise of the bus approaching the bus stop distracted him from what he had wanted to say, and Marco huffed a relieved sigh.

He beckoned the two older women and the three middle-aged men waiting for the bus together with them to enter the vehicle first, and Matze and Auba came to the help of one of the men and lifted his suitcase into the bus for him. The man looked surprised but then, smiled gratefully at the two boys. “Thank you, that was very kind of you. Such politeness coming from teenagers is hardly seen nowadays.”

Matze and Auba grinned back. “You're welcome, Sir!” they said with a short bow, and the man blushed and shook his head, but he couldn't really hide his pleasure and amazement. Marco waited until Mr. Sahin had entered the bus after the three men before climbing the two stairs and stopping beside the driver's seat. “Hello Arno! We're on our hiking day, I think my pupils' tickets should remain valid for the entire city, but I'm not sure, can you please check that?” he greeted the driver. Marco knew most of the drivers of this bus line, because it was the same bus he normally took in the mornings or in the early afternoon when the school day was over.

Arno, a man in his early thirties, eyed the big red-white scarf wrapped around Marco's neck before directing his critical gaze at the teenagers waiting patiently before the bus in their two perfect lines.  
“Your hiking day? Are you going to a funeral?” he asked with big eyes, because it had never happened to him beforehand that the pupils hadn't stormed into his bus right when the door was half-way opened, shoving and pushing each other while shouting and trying the get the best seats.

“No, we're going to the Säbener Straße. We're allowed to visit the training center of the FCB and watch the players during their training,” Marco admitted, proudly, and Arno gulped for air. “Really? I would have expected a little more excitement, then?” he stated, clearly confused by the demeanor of Marco's class. “Are they always as well-behaved like this?” The bus driver shook his head and blinked, but when he opened his eyes again, the twenty-six teenagers were still standing in their lines, holding hands and smiling politely at him.

Marco chuckled. “You would be surprised, Arno. They are great kids, really. Will you check their tickets, please? I'll pay the difference in case it will be necessary.”

Arno snorted. “Yes, of course,” he said, still stunned by the sight of Marco's well-educated crocodile. The reptile now started to wind itself into his bus, crocodile-item after crocodile-item, and each couple lifted their tickets up and greeted him with a cheerful “Good morning, Arno!” before making room for the next one until the bus had swallowed the end of the long tail and closed his large door-mouth with a dull noise that actually sounded like a sated belch.

The crocodile snickered and giggled a little bit as it dissolved itself into thirteen single links, the couples looking for free seats with the male students taking their girls' bags and offering their arms to them for support as they sat down on the benches together. Marco waited until his pupils had all found a place to sit, only the four self-appointed guards deciding to stand during the drive and offer two of their seats to Marco and Mr. Sahin. He could feel the glances of the other occupants on his back, the grown-ups had obviously a hard time digesting the spectacle unfolding itself before their gaping eyes. He grinned when Arno craned his head to shoot him one last mistrustful glance, furtively winking at him with his left eye. The bus-driver was obviously suspecting that Marco had used some kind of strange drug to evoke this behavior among his students, and the blond teacher knew that he would have to answer a lot of questions the next time he would take his bus. To his luck, Arno's tight schedule kept him from asking nosy questions right there and then, instead, he only nodded and said: “It's okay, you don't need to pay for the tickets, Marco.”

“Thank you, Arno!” Marco gave back, earning a sidelong glance from his neighbor that could only be called disgusted. It was clear that Mr. Sahin didn't approve his acquaintance with a bus-driver, but Marco couldn't have cared less about that. It didn't do any harm to be friendly and polite to Arno and his colleagues during the long drives, and it had happened oftentimes enough that one of them had waited for Marco when he had been late. He didn't have the money for maintaining a car, and he also didn't saw the necessity of stressing himself by having to look for a place where he could park it or spend hours stuck in a traffic jam. In the bus, he could read or prepare his classes, and in case he really needed a car, he knew that he could count on his friend Marcel, who would drive him everywhere he needed to go.

“Your students are not as bad as I had feared they would be.” Mr. Sahin's statement pulled Marco out of his thoughts, and he turned his head to look at the older man. Nuri and Ewa had managed to get the two seats behind Erik and Lisa, far away from where Marco and Nuri's father were seated, and for one short moment, Marco truly envied them. But, when he caught a glimpse at Nuri's pale face, his envy faded again, and he beamed at the businessman to distract him from his observation of his son.

“Of course, I did, Mr. Sahin. The friendly secretary assured me that they are awaiting us and that Mr. Guardiola will show you around, personally, while the kids will get the chance to talk to the players. She told me that Mr. Guardiola is more than pleased to meet you, and that he is looking forward to deepen your acquaintance!”

That was a blatant lie, because Marco hadn't called the training center before leaving school, but he would deal with that later when he had to. Right now, all that was important to him was to keep Nuri's father from asking to many questions and distract him from his son and his prejudices, and if telling him some white lies to lift up his mood was what Mr. Sahin wanted and needed to hear, then Marco would tell them to him without having a bad conscience.

The young teacher leaned back in his seat and relaxed, a small smile curling on his lips. Soon, he would see his beloved Sunny again, his Julian, and he wouldn't let Mr. Sahin ruin his mood, no way.

The sun was shining and their hiking day had started much better than he had thought after Mr. Klopp's announcement, and this only because of the wonderful kids his pupils actually were.

Marco looked around again before forcing his attention back to his unwanted companion, and when Erik smiled shyly at him and with rosy cheeks, Marco smiled back and promised to himself that he would protect Mario's younger brother and his secret relationship with Mr. Sahin's son against all odds, and if protecting them was the last thing he would do in his life.

Erik and Nuri wouldn't become another tragic version of Romeo and Juliet, Marco would see to that, personally, no matter the cost.


	38. The Hiking Day, Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marco and his class arrive in the Säbener Straße. Will everything go smoothly or will there be any problems awaiting them?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It has been more than a year since the last update, and this story has gotten a lot of hits since then, but only few kudos and no one was asking for an update ever since the last posting, so I'm not sure whether or not there is still anyone left who is still interested in this story.  
> I'm actually musing about deleting it but wanted to give it a try again before deciding what I will do. My decision will depend on the feedback this chapter will get, writing long and demanding WIPs without active support is neither fun nor easy but frustrating and really hard and difficult, so if there is still anybody out there wanting me to finish this story, let me know and support this story with kudos and comments. <33

Marco felt nervous like hell when they reached the Säbener Straße after a long drive with the bus and the subway, and his gratitude for the mature behavior of his students rose to new levels when they stopped in front of the gate in two perfectly straight lines again, waiting patiently to be let in instead of shouting and bouncing up and down like every other kid in this world would have done standing in front of the famous FCB training center.

His knees buckled with relief when he saw Mario already heading in their direction, opening the gate for them personally. “Mr. Reus, Mr. Sahin, what a pleasure to have you here. Welcome to the FCB training center, we all hope that you will have a great day here!” Mario welcomed them, shaking Mr. Sahin's hand as if they hadn't had a heated argument during the talk show, beaming at Nuri's father as if he was his best friend or a long missed relative.

“Good morning, Mr. Götze,” Mr. Sahin said stiffly, and his own smile looked more like a grimace than like a real smile. The colorful crocodile commented on his rather impolite demeanor with disapproving murmur, but Mario pretended not to notice the older man's coldness and simply turned around to offer his hand to Marco as well.

The blond teacher took it, his fingers tingling where they touched those of his boyfriend. “Mr. Götze, thank you so much for your warm welcome,” he said, hoping that his voice didn't sound too hoarse. “The pleasure is all ours, and I am sure that we will have a wonderful and very interesting hiking day here in the heart of the best football club in the world.”

His words earned him another smile that would have melted a huge iceberg within a few seconds, and his secret boyfriend winked at him, sharing a brief intimate moment with him as both of them remembered Marco's ignorance about football in general and about who Mario actually was in special when they had first met.

The crocodile snickered gleefully, Marco not knowing anything about football and not having been a football fan at all until a few weeks ago was common knowledge among his pupils, and it was obvious that they found the whole situation pretty funny.

Mario now looked around as though he was searching for something, frowning and shaking his head in faked confusion. “I thought you would bring your students with you, Mr. Reus. But I can't see any teenagers here. All I can see is this rare exemplar of a huge centipede – which I thought to be died out since several millions of years at least. It's really exciting to see that there are still such amazing creatures living in this world, but where are your pupils?”

The big centipede woohooed and clapped its glove-covered hands at that, and Marco grinned and beckoned Mr. Sahin to step through the open gate first. “I fear that this centipede has swallowed my poor students because of its terrible hunger, but I am positive that it will set them free again as soon as it has entered the training center. Twenty-six teenagers must be hard to digest even for such a huge insect, and it will surely get belly ache and try to get rid of the reason for its stomach ache any time soon again.”

He waved at his students to follow Mr. Sahin, and the crocodile obediently followed the businessman through the gate with small tripping steps, each link high-fiving with Mario as they passed him. It was clear to see that Mr. Sahin didn't approve of Mario lowering himself down like that, but Marco couldn't have cared less about his foul mood.

Even more because he saw Pep Guardiola rushing in their direction now, smiling brightly at the older man. “Mr. Sahin! Welcome to the FCB training center. Please let me show you around personally! Mr. Rummenigge and Mr. Hoeneß are very much looking forward to you joining them for lunch,” he greeted his guest, placing his hand between Mr. Sahin's shoulder blades and gently but firmly forcing him to walk towards the entrance of the building without waiting for Marco and his class.

“But I need to see to my son being...” was all Marco heard before Guardiola and disappeared behind the glass doors with the businessman, and he couldn't hold back the groan of relief that escaped his lips against his will.

“Thank God and your trainer, Mr. Götze. I really don't mind it when parents ask me to accompany us on our hiking days or school trips, but this...”

Mario winked at him again. “Yes, some parents should better stay away from such events,” he agreed, cocking his head to the side. “I would be very pleased if you called me Mario, Mr. Reus. The same goes for your astonishingly well-behaved crocodile of course. They really deserve it after having shown such self-control in front of Mr. Sahin.”

“It would be my greatest pleasure, Mario. But only if you call me Marco then,” Marco stammered sheepishly, grateful that Mario had found a way to avoid the formal addressing with his suggestion.

The crocodile had unfolded itself the minute Mr. Sahin had left the scene, cornering the young footballer with shouts of joy in the attempt to shake his hand - all of them at the same time of course. Marco felt almost relieved when he saw his students behaving like teenagers again, and he really couldn't blame them for their excitement because he felt as excited as they did.

It took Mario a moment to shake twenty-six hands now freed from their gloves, and when he was done, he massaged his right hand with his left one. “Are you sure that they are just teenagers? Some of them have a grip like a bodybuilder,” he groaned, but he smiled at the shouting and laughing kids as he wrapped his arm around Erik's shoulder.

“Come on, my teammates are already waiting for you. Bastian and I will show you the training center and explain everything to you, and after that, we will have lunch in our cafeteria. After lunch, you are all invited to watch our training game against our second team and ask for photos and autographs after the game. Please don't try to do that before the game, the players will answer to your questions after the training match as well, there will be enough time for photos and questions left, I promise you – from the players of the first and the second team – if some of you want to have an autograph of our future generation.” Marco's students nodded their heads with serious expressions on their faces, and Mario turned his head to wink at Marco when he said that, clearly remembering what Marco had thought when they had met for the first time, and the young teacher blushed and chuckled, raising his hands in defeat.

Erik turned his head around as well, grinning at Marco, and the blond realized that Mario must have told his brother about his first encounter with his dense teacher who had thought that the famous Mario Götze must play for the second team as young as he was.

Nuri and Ewa took him in the middle as they finally entered the building as well, and Marco followed his boyfriend into the belly of the training center with sparkling eyes and his heart beating fast in his chest, hoping that he wouldn't do something really stupid and accidentally reveal that Mario was so much more to him than only the brother of one his students.

 

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“And this is our locker room – the one here in the Säbener Straße of course, not the locker room in the Allianz Arena,” Mario said two hours later as he led his guests through a long corridor and opened a door. Bastian standing beside him shot him an amused look.

“I don't think that Marco and his students would have taken it for the room where we change before a match, Mario,” he teased his younger teammate, and Mario blushed and scowled at him. Being so close to Marco without being able to touch and kiss him confused Mario pretty much – much more than he had actually thought that it would upset him – and he could see that it was the same for the handsome teacher who had trapped his heart so thoroughly.

Marco's face was partly hidden in the shadows of the rather dark corridor, he stood several meters away from Mario at the end of the long line his pupils had had to form again because of the limited space. The blond teacher had listened silently to Mario's and Bastian's explanations over the last two hours, asking questions only now and then, and Mario felt uncertainty pooling in his belly, wishing that he knew what his boyfriend was thinking. Marco seemed to have withdrawn from him, his face having become an unreadable mask, and Mario's heart was beating anxiously in his throat when the taller one refused to meet his eyes, watching Bastian instead.

“Aww, it's cool anyway! We've always wanted to see where our stars spend their time before and after training or a match. Locker rooms have always the aura of some kind of sanctuary,” Auba stated happily, pulling at Matze's hand to snake both of them through the small slit between Mario and the halfway opened door. Matze stumbled after him taken by surprise, stopping in the middle of the room and gazing around in wonder and awe, stunned into silent admiration that he was allowed to see where his favorite players turned from being 'normal' people into stars and back. The other teenagers followed their example eagerly, only Erik hesitated to enter the room, his gaze instinctively searching Nuri's.

The older teenager smiled at him. “You look as if you had never been here before, Erik?” he asked, not really sounding surprised. Mario was sure that Erik had told the boy he loved so much how uncomfortable he had always felt when he had visited Mario, one of the reasons why Mario hadn't asked him to visit him more than only a few times over the last year.

Erik shrugged his shoulders. “Yes, I've been here before.” He gave Bastian a quick sidelong glance. “You have always been so nice to me, it's just – everything is so intimidating, so many important people, and I am just a normal teenager...”

The older footballer ruffled Erik's hair with a smile. “You're as important as everyone else here, Erik. We might be well-known in publicity, but this doesn't make us more important. You're Mario's brother, and you are very important to him, so you are important to us as well.”

Erik blushed, but he relaxed, peering through the slit to see why his classmates found the locker room so fascinating. “This one is your locker, isn't it?” he pointed at one of the metal cabinets at the other side of the room. Mario nodded, pushing against the door and walking into the room. “Yes, this is mine. Just open the door, it is unlocked, I'm keeping something special there,” he said, his voice a little bit hoarse with emotion.

Erik gazed curiously at him before grabbing Nuri's hand to pull him with him. He blushed and let go of the older teenager's hand again when he realized what he was doing, biting down on his lip, but Nuri simply took his hand again and smiled at him. “I'm curious about this something special in your brother's locker, Erik. Let us take a look at it, shall we?”

Mario leaned against the door frame with his arms folded across his chest because he felt cold all of a sudden when Marco gave him a strange look, and Bastian seemed to sense the tension between them, because he pursed his lips and shrugged. “I'd better watch them, I guess. I don't think that they would try to steal something, but we're responsible for them,” he drawled, shooting Mario a meaningful look. “Marco looks as if he had some questions he wants to ask you as Erik's older brother. Why don't you talk to him while I entertain the kids?”

“We can hear you, Bastian!” Marie giggled with rosy cheeks, still barely able to believe that she was allowed to call Bastian Schweinsteiger by his first name. “We're no kids!”

Bastian laughed and walked over to her, taking her hand to blow a kiss upon it. “My fault, my lady, how could I take you for a child?” he exclaimed dramatically, jerking his head at Mario to make him close the door and talk to Marco. Mario did with a grateful smile, and when he turned around, he gasped out, because Marco stood very close to him all of a sudden, looking him deep in the eyes.

 

\--------------------------------------------

 

Mario looked so beautiful, and Marco longed to kiss him so much that it was a physical ache in his chest. Marco could see the slight trembling of his bottom lip when he smaller one glanced at him, uncertainty darkening his brown eyes.

“Have I said or done something wrong, Marco?” Mario eventually asked when Marco didn't speak up, only regarded him thoughtfully.

“No, you haven't, Sunny,” Marco murmured quietly not to be overheard, “I'm sorry. It's just so hard to be so close to you without being allowed to touch you. I wouldn't have thought that pretending that you are just Erik's older brother for me could be so hard. I'm so afraid that I could let something slip that I don't dare to say anything at all in order not to reveal our relationship.”

Mario swallowed, but he relaxed with a relieved sigh. “Yes, I know what you mean, it's the same for me. I really wished we could at least appear as close friends, but we can't risk that. Not at this point. No one knows that we haven't just met a couple of days ago when you came here for the first time.”

Marco balled his fists to keep himself from stroking Mario's rosy cheek. “In a few months perhaps,” he said, hesitating as he thought about his next words.

“There is more that bothers you, isn't it?” Mario mumbled, casting his eyes down, and Marco cursed inwardly that he couldn't take him in his arms.

“I hadn't realized before this day how famous you actually are, I guess,” Marco admitted a little bit helplessly.

Mario frowned. “You've been in the stadium and watched one of our games, Marco,” he said confused, and Marco reached out but let his hand fall down again.

“Yes, I know. But seeing your training center here and your equipment somehow showed much better how different the leagues are we're playing in, so to speak. Your teammates – even I have heard their names and seen them on TV or in the magazines – they are stars and your friends, and I am just a simple teacher. I can't even afford the money for a car...” Marco hated himself for his words, but he couldn't ignore his mixed feelings any longer, not after seeing where Mario worked.

“What do you mean with that, Marco?” Mario asked with a frown, “do you think that I feel superior to you because I earn more money? You don't really want to start an argument about money right now - with your class within earshot, do you?”

Marco stepped back from the younger one. “No, I don't want that. You were the one asking me what's wrong, I just told you how difficult everything is for me at the moment.” He swallowed, disappointment forming a lump in his throat. He had hoped that Mario would understand his problems, but he had apparently been wrong with that.

“We should join the others. My students and Bastian are probably already wondering where we are.” Marco turned around and stalked over to the door, ignoring Mario's hurt gasp even though it cut right through his heart.


End file.
